


Why Choose The One Who Hurts You?

by SexyEzekielTDI



Series: South Park [1]
Category: South Park
Genre: Kenny Dying (Nothing New There :D), Multi, Possible Smut....Haven't Fully Decided Yet :D, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide, normal south park stuff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-07
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-01-30 20:40:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12661023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SexyEzekielTDI/pseuds/SexyEzekielTDI
Summary: When You Can Try Something New?For years now, Kenny has had a crush on his "Super Best Friend" Eric Cartman, but he never thought anything of it. Now, the boys are 13 and starting the 8th grade at South Park Middle School. Kenny knows that what he feels is real, but he's afraid to tell Cartman the truth. As long as he's known the heavier boy, all Eric Cartman has ever said is that he HATES fags and that they should burn in Hell. It shouldn't be that hard to continue keeping his feelings secret, right..? With Eric, who knows Kenny better than anyone else, constantly asking him if something is bothering him, he's not so sure. Little does he know, someone else has their eyes on him. Someone who watches from afar, never confronting the blonde boy.One day, fed up with Eric's pestering, Kenny accidentally blurts out his feelings in front of Eric, Stan, and Kyle. Eric...doesn't react well....at all..Is this the perfect moment for the boy in the shadows to strike, middle finger erect?Or will tragedy strike instead?Bad shit happens, then there are moments of cute fluff, there's jealous plans, and then Kenny gets sick...really sick...(THIS STORY DOES NOT HAVE AN ENDING YET!!!! :D)





	1. "I'm not a fag, Kinneh!!"

 

It was currently June in that little Colorado town named South Park. Despite it being the start of summer, the little mountain town was covered in a few inches of snow. For the towns residents, this was perfectly normal, as the town was covered in snow all year round. Our story begins with a group of four 13 year old boys waiting for the bus to take them to school. South Park Middle School wasn't actually  _in_  South Park, but rather just outside the town's border behind the South Park Mall. Back to our four boys, you might know them well. Their names are Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormick. They were all excited because this was the last week of the school year and they, Eric especially, had big plans for the summer. Kyle's family was going on vacation to Canada so Ike could see more of where he originally came from, Stan's family was spending a few days in Denver, and Eric and his Mom were visiting relatives out of state. The only one who had nothing to do, unfortunately, was Kenny. His family was unable to afford any sort of vacation, so he was going to be left alone in South Park without his best friends.

 

At the current moment, the boys were standing at the school bus stop like they did every morning. Like normal, Kyle and Eric were yelling at each other about pointless stuff, Stan was trying to pretend he was somewhere else, and Kenny was staring up at the sky.  _"Huh....the clouds look really pretty today..."_ , he thought.  _"They're really fluffy...like cotton balls..."_

 

"- Stupid Ginger Whore!!"

 

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, FATASS!!!!"

 

"EEY!!! MAKE ME, YOU DIRTY-ASS JEW!!!"

 

Stan sighed from beside him as their other two friends continued arguing loudly. Kenny smiled a little behind his tightly drawn up parka hood.  _"Some things will never change."_ , he thought affectionately. He looked over at the other two, his deep blue eyes settling on the heaviest boy of their quartet. Although Eric wasn't nearly as heavy as he was four years prior, he still had a bit of extra weight to him. Kenny thought the brunette was beautiful when his cheeks were flushed and when his baby blue eyes were bright with anger, the way he was that very second. It was correct to say that Kenny had a bit of a crush on the heavier boy. Yes, Eric Theodore Cartman was a bigoted, racist, sociopathic asshole with no morals. But Kenny had also seen his heart on  _several_ occasions. Like that time in the fourth grade when he had hid all those cats in his attic when they had been banned. Or in the third grade when he had cried when Kenny was legitimately dying. Some, including Kyle, had argued that he had just wanted sympathy and attention. However, Kenny had once possessed his larger friend for several weeks that same year. He had seen inside his head, inside his heart. Eric, to some degree,  _did_  in fact care about him. 

 

The blonde boy was terribly startled when the object of his thoughts suddenly spoke to him. "Kinny? 'ey, Kinny? Kinny, why are you staring at me?", the brunette demanded, snapping his fingers in the blonde's face. Kenny panicked a little. He hadn't realized that Eric had turned to look back at him! "S-Sorry! I think I zoned out for a minute or two!", he squeaked nervously.  _"Fuck! That made me sound like Butters! Now he's going to be suspicious of me! Where is Mysterion's aloofness when I need it, dammit!"_ Eric raised an eyebrow at the parka-wearing blonde's obvious cover-up, but chose not to comment on it just yet. Kenny breathed a sigh of relief when the bus chose that exact moment to arrive. The four boys boarded the bus and went to find seats. Like normal, Stan and Kyle chose an empty seat in the back so that they could sit together. Eric chose to sit next to Butters this time. ("Well, good morning Eric!" "Shut up, Butters." "Oh, okay.") With a sigh, Kenny looked around for an empty seat. Huh, for some reason, Tweek wasn't sitting next to Craig like he normally did every day. Instead, the jittery blonde was sitting next to Kevin Stoley behind Clyde and Bebe. Weird. Taking a chance, he walked over to Craig and cleared his throat to get his attention. After a second, dark grey-blue eyes lifted to his own. "If you're going to sit down, then just sit the fuck down.", Craig said flatly before returning his eyes to the window. With a shrug, Kenny sat down and said nothing.

 

 

The day passed relatively quickly, not any different from any other day. Except that in every class Kenny shared with Eric, he could feel the heavier boy's gaze on him. He would get this feeling of being watched and when he peeked over his shoulder to see who it was, he would catch a glimpse of those baby blue eyes staring at him. It was getting kind of creepy, to be honest. Was this revenge for getting caught staring this morning? He wouldn't put it passed Eric to be that petty, he'd done so many times before after all. Then lunchtime came around and all the students sat at their respective tables. Like most days, Kenny sat at the table with no food in front of him, unable to afford to pay for lunch. Surprising him, he felt someone yank down his hood before sitting beside him. That person slammed their tray when they sat. It was Eric. "Alright Kinny, spill it.", he commanded. He caught the attention of everyone seated at their table. Kenny turned to him, making eye contact. "What?", was his response to the command, his voice clear and unmuffled. Eric rolled his eyes. "Don't play stupid. I haven't forgotten this morning, you know. People don't just stare at other people for no reason, Kinny! Plus, you've been more distracted today than you are normally!" Kenny fought a blush. He  _had_  been rather distracted today. He'd been contemplating on whether or not he should tell Eric how he truly feels about him. He couldn't just admit that  _now_ , though! "I don't know what you're talking about, fat boy.", he said with his own eye roll. Eric turned red at the light insult. "Yes you do! I won't let this go until you tell me!", he snapped, slightly annoyed now. Kenny shrugged, looking away from him. "Good luck, then.."

 

True to his word, Eric spent the rest of the day pestering him about what was bothering him. Which sucked, since the last classes of the day were the ones all three of Kenny's best friends shared with him. It was really starting to grate on the blonde's nerves. Several times, Kyle told Eric to knock it off while Stan demanded to know why he cared so much. The first time, the brunette had spluttered, unable to form an answer. Now, he was just ignoring them. Kenny was starting to get a headache and his temper was slowly rising. This wasn't going to end well for anybody involved. 

 

 

Then finally, the last bell rang and they were all free to go home. Kenny's head was pounding and he was at his wits end. Three and a half hours of Eric's persistence.  _Three and a half._ He was close to losing his shit if this continued. He just wanted to go home and cool off, away from Eric's endless pestering. At his locker, he rediscovered the pistol he'd confiscated off of Kevin that morning in his backpack. It had only one bullet in its chamber. His older brother had been threatening to shoot their dad with it, so Kenny had wrestled him for it and won. Since he'd been short on time, he'd just stuck it in his school bag and forgot about it. After making sure the safety was on, he stuck it in his parka's inner pocket. Kyle and Stan showed up then, letting him do his own thing. Stan was telling Kyle about a date he had with Wendy later that evening, Kyle nodding at the appropriate moments. Then Eric showed up the way he was famous for: loud and obnoxious. "KINNEH!! HOW DARE YEW IGNORE MEH ALL AFTERNOON, YEW POOR PIECE OF SHIT!!", he yelled as he approached. Kenny tensed up in response, groaning inwardly. Kyle glared at Eric. "What the fuck is your problem, Cartman! Just leave Kenny alone!", he snapped. "Mind your own business, Kahl!", Eric snapped back. "For the hundredth time, why the fuck do you care so much??", Stan spoke up angrily. Kenny clenched his eyes shut as his friends yelled at each other. He was starting to shake slightly as he bit his lower lip and clenched his fists tightly. Then Eric addressed him directly, sounding oddly calm. "Kinny, I figured out that the reason you were so distracted today had something to do with  _me_! I noticed that you've been staring at me  _a lot_  lately, as well as stuttering so bad you sound like Butters! I just want to know what gives? Is that too much to ask?" Kenny bit his lip harder than before. Eric sounded angry again as he repeated his question louder. Kenny tried to tune him out, he really did! But that voice kept piercing his brain the louder and angrier it got. "....that you're obviously troubled about something, Kinny! Why don't you stop being such a little  _bitch_  and just tell me what your problem is, you poor piece of crap!", reached Kenny's ears. Something inside of the blonde just.... _snapped_....and he couldn't control what came out of his mouth.

 

" _MY PROBLEM_  IS THAT I HAVE FEELINGS FOR YOU, YOU ASSHOLE!!!"

 

There was nothing but silence after his outburst. Kenny gasped and slapped one of his hands over his mouth, completely mortified by what he'd just blurted out. He hesitantly lifted his eyes to his friends. Kyle just nodded and Stan didn't seem surprised, like they had figured it out awhile ago. Eric's eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging open slightly. Kenny's heart was hammering in his chest while he waited for a reaction. Seconds ticked by before the brunette reacted to the confession he'd finally processed. His eyes narrowed and his upper lip curled as he sneered. "What the fuck, Kinny! EWWW!!!", he yelled, obviously disgusted. Kenny flinched at the harshness of his voice. Eric's voice took on a more mocking tone as he continued to stomp on Kenny's most vulnerable organ. "I never took yew for a  _fag_ , Kinneh! I thought yew had at least a  _little_  bit of dignity, but I guess I was wrong! You're no better than fucking  _Craig_!! Do you see how  _disgusting_  what you just said is? I'm your supposed 'Super Best Friend', yew sick freak!!", his voice was getting shriller the more he yelled. Kenny looked at him pitifully, his heart aching. He wasn't going to lie, he had considered rejection to be a possible outcome of confessing, but not one this  _cruel_. He guessed that he should have. This was Eric Cartman after all, the biggest asshole in the seventh grade. Then Eric delivered a final blow. "I will NEVER return your sick feelings, Kinneh! Next time you die, why don't you just  _stay dead_!!!" Kenny's heart  _shattered._  Tears welled up in his eyes as he reacted immediately. He snatched up his bag and fled, consumed by his devastation and agony. A faint pissed off yell of, "CARTMAN, THAT WAS  _WAY_  TOO FAR!!!", reached his ears but he didn't respond to it. He burst through the front doors and nearly knocked Craig over as he ran passed. He just wanted this pain to end, it was worse than any of the physical pain he'd experienced over the years. As he ran, he felt a familiar weight bouncing in his inner parka pocket. He paused in his running, pulling his brother's pistol out of his jacket and staring at it for a moment. He knew that this wouldn't be a permanent solution, just a short reprieve from his reality. Turning off the safety, he slipped the gun between his lips, letting its weight rest on his tongue. He closed his eyes and slowly moved his finger to the trigger............

 

Suddenly he was tackled to the ground from behind. An arm reached around his head and ripped the gun out of his mouth first and then from his hand. The sleeve of the person pinning him was a familiar dark blue. He squirmed until the other person let go of him, yanking him upright with one arm. "WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU, MCCORMICK???", a familiar nasally voice yelled, obviously angry and alarmed.  _Craig_. "Let me go!!", he yelled back.  He was dropped onto his knees. He turned to look at the other boy. Craig was panting, his blue chullo hat slightly crooked, and his eyes wide. The gun was in his right hand and he was holding it the wrong way. Kenny's eyes widened. He had to get it back! Or maybe.. He swallowed nervously. "Please...Craig...please shoot me...", he begged. Craig's mouth fell open in shock, revealing the braces he'd gotten in February. "What?!", he exclaimed in horrified surprise. Tears started running down the blonde's freckled face. "Please! Just do it! Trust me! Please!!!", he cried desperately. Footsteps quickly came over to them. It was Stan and Kyle, who were dragging a reluctant Eric behind them. "Kenny!", Stan yelled when he saw them. Craig immediately turned around to face them, gun in hand. "What's going on here?", Kyle asked, worried and angry at the same time. "You tell me! He had this gun in his mouth and when I took it from him he begged me to fucking shoot him!", Craig yelled. Kyle's eyes widened as Stan gasped loudly. Eric, as usual, couldn't keep his mouth shut. "He confessed that he had 'feelings for me' and I told him he was disgusting.", he sneered. He blinked as Craig suddenly aimed the pistol between his eyes. He actually looked seriously pissed off. "Why the  _fuck_  would you do that, you fat waste of oxygen!!", he snapped. Stan's eyes widened as he looked over Craig's shoulder. "Um...Craig..?", he spoke up nervously. Before the other raven could respond, he was tackled to the ground from behind. He immediately fought back, wrestling with Kenny and trying to keep the blonde from taking the gun back. What happened next, happened so fast that there was no time to react. 

 

The sound of a gunshot filled the air.

 

Kenny went deathly still as blood poured from his forehead. Somehow in the struggle, he had pressed the gun's trigger when it was pointed at his head for a split second. In the millisecond before he'd died, his lips curled into a pleased smile. Craig screamed as he threw himself away from the blonde's body. Eric's eyes were wide as he stared at his friend's corpse. He'd caused that. Kenny had killed himself because of  _him_. He let out a loud gasp as he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest, like he'd just been stabbed in the heart.

 

"Oh My God, Kenny just killed himself!!"

 

"You bastard, why?????"

 

 

(End of Chapter One)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!!


	2. Two Flashbacks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cartman notices something that he never had before.
> 
> Craig finds something else that he gives a shit about.

(This might be the shortest chapter...)

 

** Flashback One: The Day He Noticed **

 

 

Let's go back a few months to a specific day in the month of March. It was currently lunchtime and the majority of the seventh grade was filling up the cafeteria. We're going to focus on one specific table. I think you know which one. The table was full of chatter and laughter and Clyde complaining. Eric and Kenny were having a friendly argument about a movie the quartet had seen recently. Kenny was poking the brunette in the chest as he giggled. Eric was whining and trying to slap the blonde's hands away while trying not to laugh himself. "Kinny, st-stop it! You know I-I'm ticklish!", he choked out as he squirmed. "Kinneh!!" The un-hooded blonde grinned at him impishly. "Not until you admit how much the movie sucked!!", he teased. "What?? S-Seriously?? Fine!! The movie was garbage!! I said it!! Now, knock it off!!" With a mischievous laugh, the blonde did as demanded.

 

 

Eric huffed and turned away for a moment before turning back to scowl at his "Super Best Friend". That was when it happened. He hesitated for just a moment as he focused on the other boy's face. Were Kenny's eyes always that blue and bottomless? Did he always have freckles on his nose and cheek bones? He blinked, forgetting for a second that he was supposed to be pretending to be mad. Kenny usually had most of his face hidden by his parka hood, he had since preschool, so this was a rare opportunity. He'd never noticed the way that fine blonde strands fell into deep blue eyes or the way soft pink lips formed words-

 

"CARTMAN!!!"

 

He jumped, snapping his head in Kyle's direction. "What, Kahl?", he snapped, embarrassed and irritated by his embarrassment. Kyle rolled his eyes. "Why are you staring at Kenny, dude? He's been trying to get your attention for the past three minutes!" He felt his face flood with heat. "I don't know! Maybe I zoned out, Kahl!! Is that a problem, Jew-Boy??", he glared icy blue daggers at his ginger frenemy. Emerald fire glared back. He felt a hand land gently on his shoulder and he relaxed after a moment. "Just calm down, okay? So, you zoned out for a few minutes. It's not a big deal.." As it always was in these situations, Kenny's light voice was very calming to the bigger boy. It made his heart do a backflip inside his chest. He swallowed thickly. What was the matter with him?????

 

(End.)

 

** Flashback Two: The Day He Added An Addition To His List **

 

 

There were few things in the world that Craig Tucker cared about. Currently, written on a post-it note on the inside of his locker door, was a very short list of those things. This is the list:

 

**1.) My guinea pig, Stripe.**

**2.) My small, select group** **of friends.**

 

He had no plans to change that.

 

One night, tired of his parents arguing, Craig pulled on his jacket and snuck out his bedroom window. The night air was slightly chilly but the sky was clear. The inky blackness of the night sky was sprinkled with tiny stars. Moonlight filled the air. Despite the romantic description, Craig was feeling anything but. He walked through the town with his hands buried in his pockets. He sighed, watching his breath curl in the open air.

 

He soon found himself by Stark's Pond. He glanced quickly at the thick ice covering the entire surface of the lake. Missed the first time, but caught by a second glance, he noticed an orange blob  in the middle of the frozen water. It took him a moment to recognize it for what it was. There was only one person in the entire fifth grade who wore that horrendous shade of orange. It was Kenny McCormick. It didn't look like he was even breathing. Craig experienced a brief flash of concern. Small as it was, it still caused the raven boy to carefully make his way across the ice to the blonde's side. Kenny's eyes were closed, his lips turning blue. Craig wondered if he was dead. He didn't want to be involved if he was. He kicked the blonde's side and exhaled in relief when his eyes opened. Deep blue irises soon focused on him.

 

"..C-Craig..?", the blonde's voice was weak and hard to hear. "I don't think the middle of Stark's Pond is the best place for a nap..", he deadpanned, crossing his arms. "You could freeze to death.." He thought he heard a faint, "That was the point..", but that couldn't be right. He probably imagined it. "C'mon, McCormick. Let's get you home, okay?" He grabbed an arm and yanked the shorter boy to his feet. Kenny swayed before his frozen legs gave out from under him. He would have hit his head on the ice if Craig hadn't caught him mid-fall. "Jeez, how long have you been out here..?" Kenny flashed him a weak grin. "I can't r-remember..." Exhaling through his nose, Craig hoisted the blonde onto his back. "Let's go.." They began the slow trek to the blonde's shack of a house. The blonde boy was a lot lighter than Craig had expected. Did he even eat? He hardly ever ate lunch, unable to afford it. Sometimes he brought his own lunch, but it was usually a single slice of that gross bologna between two slices of bread. That was it. It was kind of pathetic.

 

Soon, they finally reached the McCormick residence. Craig carried his cargo into the house and into Kenny's bedroom, dumping the blonde on his bed. He glanced back at him. The other boy had fallen asleep at some point, his chest rising and falling peacefully. Craig quietly left the house. A tiny smile curled his lips as he mentally added an addition to his list.

 

**3.) Kenny McCormick, the possibly suicidal asshole.**

 

(End of Chapter Two)

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	3. Realizations and Confessions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cartman has an epiphany that took its sweet time to happen and Craig makes his move.

 

That night, Eric had a hard time falling asleep. He just laid in his bed, in the dark, and stared at his bedroom ceiling. There was a strange feeling eating at his heart that he had never experienced before. It had started shortly after they had all left school and it hadn't gone away yet. Was this....what it was like to feel guilty about something you'd done..? Ugh, he didn't like it. It was a horrible feeling and Eric was used to feeling smug joy after something he had accomplished. He hadn't felt this way after feeding Scott Tenorman his own parents. He hadn't felt this way after pretending to be mentally retarded or when he had almost let Kyle die when he had refused to give him his kidney. He hadn't felt this way when he had manipulated the Dark Lord Cthulhu and almost destroyed his own dimension! So, why was he experiencing it now??? All he had done was break his best friend's heart and caused him to kill himself. That was  _nothing_  compared to other things he'd done over the years! So why was his heart aching in a way that was unfamiliar to him..? He closed his eyes, determined to try and get some sleep, but all he could hear was familiar voices bouncing around in his head like a furiously buzzing swarm of wasps.

 

 _"I don't know if I ever told you this Kinny, but..I kinda always thought you were MY best friend.."_ That was his own voice, from that one terrible day in the third grade. The day that Kenny had died for real, from illness. A day that he  _ **never**_  wanted to repeat. He had always been able to remember each time that the blonde boy had died, but  ** _that_**  death had stung the most. He could have  ** _saved_**  him, but his selfish desires had gotten in the way.

 

 _"Leave my best friend alone, you pussy-licking dicklords! He can't help the way he is!!"_ That was Kenny's voice from just last year, in sixth grade. He'd actually  ** _defended_  **him from some older boys that had clued into his sociopathic nature and had decided to rip into him about it. He'd been ready to kick their asses himself, but an orange-clad arm had shot infront of his chest, holding him back. Kenny had pulled his hood back so he could be clearly heard, before letting the older boys have it. That had to be Kenny's most impressive moment, in Eric's opinion at least.

 

 _"You **don't**  treat your 'best friends' like garbage, Fatass! That's the way  **enemies**  should be treated!"  _Kyle. He couldn't remember when this had been said to him. All he could remember after that was thinking,  _"Well isn't forgetting when one of your 'best friends' **dies**  just as bad??"_

 

 _"So Kenny was staring at you, so what? Why do you care so much anyway?"_ Stan's voice, from just yesterday afternoon. Eric hadn't been able to give him a response, not having one himself.

 

 _" **MY PROBLEM**  IS THAT I HAVE FEELINGS FOR YOU, YOU ASSHOLE!!!!!!"  _Kenny. A cry of pure, genuine emotion that had halted the brunette in his tracks. When his brain had finally processed it, he'd reacted instinctively in accordance with all his prior statements going back  ** _years_**.

 

 _"Next time you die, why don't you just **stay dead**!!"  _ Once again, his own voice. His brain had supplied him with the most hurtful thing to say and it had come flying out of his mouth. The sound of Kenny's heart breaking had almost been audible. The light had left his expressive blue eyes, leaving them empty and lifeless, like he had just died inside. The sight had twisted Eric's 'black' heart and all his insides, but he couldn't take those harsh words back even if he wanted to.

 

The sounds that were tormenting him the most, was the abrupt finality of the gunshot, followed by the sound of Kenny's final breath being released. Why did this death  _hurt_  so much? It was just a temporary death, like all the others. The blonde would be back tomorrow, fit as a fiddle. He couldn't think about what he had said and what had happened in response without wincing now! It  _hurt_  him to think about it! Was it because he hadn't meant what he'd said?  _"Or maybe.."_ , his normally absent conscience spoke up,  _"It's because **you**  have the same sick feelings for  **him**  that  **he**  has for  **you**!"  _ Huh. His conscience sounded a lot like Kyle. Maybe that's why he didn't normally pay attention to it. Interesting. Wait, no! That couldn't be what his problem was! He wasn't in love with Kenny! He wasn't a fag! Right..? His  _'oh so helpful'_  conscience decided to pull specific memories and feelings straight from his subconscious to the forefront of his mind:

 

**The first time he'd ever heard Kenny laugh when it was just the two of them.......**

 

It was a quiet sound, which was why he'd never been able to hear it before this. It was very light and different than what Eric was used to. They were only seven, so he didn't have  _that_  much to compare it to, but he wanted so badly to hear it again as much as possible.

 

**The first time he'd ever seen Kenny without his parka hood.......**

 

The boys were in between second and third grade, during summer vacation. In a rare few days of warm weather and no snow or ice, the four had decided to spend the day by Stark's Pond. They were going to go swimming and be lazy in the actually warm sunlight. Stan, noticing that Kenny was wearing his parka over his swimsuit, had asked the blonde if he was hot. Kyle had joined in, insisting that he take it off so he wouldn't give himself heatstroke. Kenny had sighed before doing as he was asked. He had removed his parka and laid it aside. For a moment, the other three boys had admired the messy blonde hair that had been revealed, before Stan and Kyle lost interest and looked away again. Eric had been unable to look away. Kenny's golden hair had almost glowed in the sunlight and his eyes had glimmered like sapphires. In that moment, Eric had felt like he couldn't breathe.

 

**Princess Kenny.......**

 

Self-explanatory. He was a beautiful Princess with golden hair and shimmering blue eyes. What else is there to say? It was enough to steal the breath from even the straightest wizards.

 

**The cold, piercing glare of Mysterion (As well as Mysterion in general).......**

 

Eric had never seen Kenny's eyes so dark and had never felt so much weaker than him before. The hooded vigilante just radiated so much raw power and authority that The Coon was left breathless for a moment. The brunette had felt weird and tingly all over his body, every nerve burning and zapping with electricity. It had been exhilarating.

 

**Don't forget a few months ago when _he_  had been caught staring at  _Kenny_.......**

 

 _"OKAY!!! OKAY!!! I FUCKING GET THE POINT NOW!!!"_ , he yelled at his conscience within his thoughts. Maybe he did like Kenny back. It was too late now anyway. He had already ruined any chance he may have had to confess back. He was  _Eric Cartman_ , though! He could still try!

 

 

The next morning, Craig ran down the street to Kenny's house as fast as his legs could carry him.  _ **He remembered.**_  He remembered Kenny killing himself after school yesterday! Sixth grade, the blonde had told him the truth himself, but Craig hadn't believed him. No one comes back to life after dying, that's crazy talk! "I think I would remember you dying..", had been his exact words. Now though, he had to see it with this very eyes. He remembered the blonde dying, now he needed to see him alive again! Kenny was on his "I give a shit about you" list, so Craig obviously cared about him a lot! He didn't care that his lungs were starting to burn, he didn't care if anybody was watching him, he didn't care if any of Kenny's friends saw him. All he cared about was making it across the discontinued railroad tracks between Kyle's house and Kenny's house. 

 

It wasn't hard for Craig to admit that he was indeed gay. He had been attracted to Tweek once, but that had gotten boring quickly. The jittery blonde never changed. He never did anything that interesting. So when they had ended their "relationship", Craig had just considered the blonde his best friend again and thought nothing else of it. Then he had actually taken notice of Kenny McCormick. He'd known  _of_  him of course and had even interacted with him on multiple occasions, but he had never cared enough to  _know_  him before. Know his favourite colour, his favourite food, his favourite sport, his favourite sports team, his favourite porn magazine, his favourite band, his favourite song, etc. He had first labeled it simply as a weird obsession of his, but he knew the truth now. It wasn't hard to figure out. The blonde's smile, his angelic laugh, his beautiful blue eyes, all took the raven's breath away. They made his heart do back flips in his chest. He had a thing for the pervy blonde and he had it  _bad_. He had been planning on asking Kenny out on a date, but yesterday he had learned that Kenny had feelings for  _Eric Cartman_  of all people! Although, the fat waste of oxygen had rejected the blonde harshly enough that he had wanted to die even though he probably knew it wouldn't be permanent. It had hurt to see him  _that_  upset. He would do his best to pick up the pieces of Kenny's heart and glue them back together again.  _Nothing_  was going to stop him.

 

He stopped, panting heavily, as he finally reached the McCormicks' front yard. Damn, he couldn't remember ever running that hard before. It literally hurt to breathe. He was ready to flip off his own lungs! Then..the front door opened..and out stepped Kenny, one hundred percent alive and unharmed. His pain suddenly didn't matter anymore as he was filled with relief. He stood up straight, trying to look like he hadn't just ran two and a half blocks in under ten minutes, and called out to the blonde. "Hey, McCormick! Want to walk to the bus stop with me?" The blonde jumped before looking at the raven in surprise. He seemed surprised to see Craig at his house in general. Craig took notice of the emptiness in the blonde's eyes and immediately felt rage against the fat fucker who had caused that look to be there. He almost missed the blonde's answer, caught up in his anger. "Sure...yeah, I guess..." Even his voice sounded lifeless. Craig had never wanted to brutally murder someone so much in his life as he did right that second. He wanted to rip Eric Cartman limb from limb for completely  _destroying_  the normally affable* Kenny McCormick. He took deep breaths to calm himself as the blonde approached him. He looked absolutely exhausted. They started walking away from Kenny's house. "Are you...okay..?", Craig asked him hesitantly, trying not to upset him. Kenny didn't look at him when he answered, "Yeah, perfectly fine. Why wouldn't I be?" The raven frowned. "Kenny, I remember everything that happened yesterday.", he said seriously. The blonde blinked slowly before turning his head to look at him with wide eyes. "Wh-What..?", he spoke up softly, his heart beginning to hammer against his ribcage.  _Could it be..?_   Craig swallowed nervously. He'd never had a serious heart to heart like this before. "You shot yourself yesterday while we were fighting over a gun I had taken from you. Just so you know, I will  _never_  forgive you for scaring the absolute  _fuck_  out of me like that. I almost had a heart attack when I saw you put that gun in your mouth..", he confessed, looking the other boy in the eyes.  _There!_  His own heart sped up as he watched a flame flicker to life inside those deep blue eyes. He easily identified it as  _hope_. A bit of life had returned to the heartbroken blonde and it had been because he had someone else, besides his best friends, who believed him. Craig smiled inwardly, not breaking his poker face.  _" **OPERATION: Heal Kenny's Broken Heart** is moving along nicely.."_, he thought, pleased with what he had caused.

 

(*= Affable means friendly, good-natured, and easy to talk to)

 

 

 

Eric, for once in his life, felt like complete and utter garbage. It was rather obvious that Kenny was  _not_  okay. First, he showed up at the bus stop with _Craig Tucker_  of all people, and it was obvious that Craig had gone to Kenny's house to be  _able_  to walk with him! Then, all day long, the blonde had avoided him  _completely_! He didn't even sit with him at lunch! He sat next to that irritating Craig Tucker! To make things even worse, Stan and Kyle were obviously still pissed at him too even though they only got fuzzy memories of Kenny dying now! It was alright though, he told himself. He could fix things. (At least...he hoped he could)

 

It was the end of the day and that was when Eric decided to take a chance and go for it. He waited until Kenny appeared at his locker, his heart hammering from nervousness. Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the blonde. "H-Hey, Kinny..", he greeted him with an actually nervous smile. The blonde did nothing to acknowledge that he was being spoken to. Eric sighed, he guessed that he deserved the silent treatment. "Kinny, look, I have something to say and I would  _really_  appreciate it if you actually listened.." The blonde sighed before glancing over his shoulder slightly. Glad that he was actually listening, Eric continued. "Look, this isn't easy for me but, I'm sorry Kinny. I'm  _really_  sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean  _anything_  that I said to you and I-I realized last night that I was completely blind to  _my_  own feelings, let alone your's.." Kenny was still silent and now Stan and Kyle were staring at him with wide eyes. Eric just kept talking to get it all out in the open. "I realized that I  _do_  like you Kinny, the way you said  _you_  liked  _me_! I feel really stupid for not realizing it sooner..." He jumped a little when the shorter boy stood up and turned to face him, his eyes cold. He swallowed nervously and held his arms out for a hug, giving him a little unsure smile. "Forgive me?" Immediately after those two words were said, those blue eyes flashed with rage and all of a sudden there was a fist colliding with his left cheek, knocking him backwards with a cry of pain. "What the  _fuck_  is wrong with you!!! Is this all some big game to you???", the blonde yelled, his eyes tearing up with anger and hurt. Eric stared at him in shock. "You pester me all goddamn day until I accidentally blurt my biggest secret to you, then you break my heart in the  _nastiest_  way possible when I would have been fine with a simple,  _'I don't feel the same way, Kenny.'_ But no, you always dig your rusty knife in a person's weak point and then you twist it to cause even  _more_  pain!!!!" Tears started streaming down his face and he moved hastily to wipe them away. "You  _always_  do this shit, Eric!! You hurt someone beyond repair and then you try and make it better,  _for yourself_ , with some fake ass apology!!!", he panted for a moment before continuing to yell at the brunette. "Like what you just fucking did!! You suddenly decide that you have  _feelings_  for me  _now_  after you hurt me so bad I wanted to die  _permanently_!!! Are you fucking serious??? Did you  _seriously_  think that,  _for even a second_ , I would fucking believe you???" Eric swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. "K-Kinny...I-I..", he started to say, but Kenny immediately cut him off. "NO!! I've had  _enough_  of your  _bullshit_!! I'm fucking  _done_!!" He slammed his locker shut and picked up his school bag.

 

"Hey McCormick!", Craig suddenly called out, as if he didn't realize he was interrupting something. (He totally did XD) "You want to...I don't know.... _hang out_  sometime?" Kenny took in a deep breath before letting it back out. "Sure, how about tonight? I've got  _nothing else_  planned." At the end of his sentence, Kenny gave the heavier boy the coldest look Eric had ever received from someone he knew. It chilled him to his very soul. Then the blonde walked away and didn't look back. Kyle and Stan were in the brunette's field of vision within seconds. "What the fuck is the matter with you, Cartman?", the redhead snapped with his arms crossed. "Yeah dude, that was just heartless...", Stan added coldly. Eric sighed. He suddenly felt exhausted. His cheek also hurt actually. "Believe it or not, I meant every word I just said to him..." The other two stared at him for a moment before Stan's eyes widened. "Holy shit, dude. I think he's actually being sincere right now..", he said in amazement. Kyle blinked before looking amazed and shocked himself. "Fuck dude, I think you might be right..." He looked Eric straight in the eyes before addressing him directly. "You really  _do_  have feelings for Kenny? No bullshit this time?", he asked softly. Eric nodded, his cheeks turning pink against his will. The other two boys looked at each other and seemed to be having a silent discussion with their eyes. Then they returned their gazes to the brunette. "Then we need to figure out a way to convince Kenny that you meant what you just confessed to him...", Kyle spoke up as the quote on quote  _smartest_  of the three. "It's not going to be easy considering his reaction. Plus, now you have competition. It's obvious that Craig is interested in Kenny too. He's going to be fighting just as hard for Kenny's attention." Stan nodded in agreement. "Are you prepared to put everything you have into this?", he asked seriously. Eric gave them the most sincere smile they had ever seen on his face. "Fuck yeah."

 

 

 

After all homework was finished and both sets of parents had been informed, Craig took Kenny to McDonald's for dinner. While they ate, Kenny complained about how much of a blood belching vagina** Eric Cartman was. Craig was in complete agreement. "He had no right to try and bullshit you like that..", he said with his mouth full of fries. He'd have to clean his braces out later, but it was worth it. Kenny glared at his half-eaten Big Mac. "I fucking know right..I don't know why I ever had feelings for him in the first place..", he grumbled bitterly. Craig shrugged. "The heart wants what the heart wants. You can't control who you love, unfortunately.." Kenny sighed in agreement. "Yeah.."

 

Later, Kenny dragged Craig back in the direction of his house before stopping at the railroad tracks. "Lay down on the tracks with me for a moment, okay?", he asked, looking at the other boy. "Okay.." Kenny laid down first with Craig following suit a second later. They both looked at the sky. There wasn't a single cloud, so the stars and moon were in full view. It was a beautiful sight, but not as beautiful as the boy beside him. He looked over at Kenny before just staring at him in awe. The moonlight washed out his already pale skin, making him look like a porcelain doll. It made his golden hair appear a silvery platinum blonde and his eyes look like crystals. He was the most beautiful thing Craig had ever laid eyes on. Then the blonde moved his head to look back. "What?", he asked when he noticed he was being stared at. Craig just shook his head. Kenny shrugged before looking back at the sky. For the next half hour, Kenny told Craig about the stars. He showed him the constellations he could see and told him all the stories behind them. Craig was amazed by how much Kenny knew about the universe. "How do you know about all that stuff..?", he asked quietly. Kenny sighed. "I read it in a book my mom has hidden in their bedroom closet. Apparently, she used to love stargazing before drugs and alcohol took over her life..." Craig nodded. "Wow..I just never thought  _you'd_  be interested in that kind of stuff...", he admitted. Kenny smiled half-heartedly. "Everyone at school seems to think that all I care about is porn, sex, and NASCAR.. I have other things I care about more than those. My sister being one of the main things. I want her to have a better life than we have, she  _deserves_  better." Craig nodded, not saying anything. "Sometimes, when my parents are drunk or high and they fight and hit each other, I come out here and just look at the stars. I like to pretend that I'm far far away from them, just floating through the cosmos..." He turned to smile at Craig. "It's nice to have someone to share my knowledge with, though..." Craig gave him a small smile back. "Thanks for telling me.." They stayed that way for a moment or two before both of them blushed and then quickly returned their gazes to the sky once more. After about five minutes of comfortable silence, Kenny spoke up again. "Hey..um..Craig? Is...Is this a  _date_..?" Craig snorted in response. "Only if you want it to be..", he answered with a small grin. They fell back into that comfortable silence. After another minute or two, Kenny spoke up once more. "I think...I think I'd like it to be...I want to try something new..is that okay..?", he asked uncertainly. Craig reached over and grabbed the blonde's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Absolutely.." 

 

Kenny squeezed back as he smiled happily.

 

**Eric: 0     Craig: 1**

 

 

 

(End of Chapter Three)

 

(**= Comment if you catch the reference and tell me what episode you think it's from :P)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! Next chapter is titled Jealousy. Can you guess who's coming?


	4. Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Craig and Kenny are officially a thing now. Tweek is less than pleased.

(Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE Tweek as a character. I just don't ship him with Craig as much as I ship Craig with other people. I shipped Craig with other people way before the Creek ship was made "canon". Plus, I LOVE protective Tweek! :3 So, please, I don't want any hate from you guys aimed at me for this. Thank you.)  


 

 

"...Are Kenny and Craig holding hands..?"

"Are they dating now..?"

 

"I thought Kenny had the hots for Bebe.."

"No way, man! Clyde would fucking  ** _kill_**  him if he did!"

 

"Wait...I thought Kenny was into Cartman...

Remember the big fight they had in the hall after school on Monday?"

"Oh yeah.."

 

"Wow, wh-wh-what a completely unexpected turn of e-e-e-e-events.."

"Timmy!!"

 

"I thought Craig was with Tweek.."

"They broke up years ago, remember?"

"Oh, yeah...you're right, dude.."

 

"Well, it looks like Craig has a thing for blondes after all, haha!" (Clyde XD)

 

"Heh Heh Heh, that's gay!"

"They  ** _are_**  gay, dumbass!

"Oh, right...Heh Heh Heh...I forgot.."

 

"Wow...they look really good together, don't they Red..?"

"Yes! They are so cute together!"

 

Whispers filled the air of the school bus Wednesday morning as soon as Kenny  and Craig had boarded it while holding hands. The duo ignored the onlookers as they sat in Craig's usual seat and Craig started digging around inside of his backpack. He pulled out his ipad and offered Kenny one of his earbuds to share. The blonde grinned before taking it and sticking it in his ear. Craig put his arm around the other boy's shoulders as they watched videos on the way to school. 

 

Tweek was staring at the back of their heads in shock and disbelief. Craig and  _ **Kenny**_...?! Since when?! He hadn't thought Craig was interested in anybody else!! It was hard to tell how Craig felt about  _ **anything**_  to be honest. He started to feel a strange sensation bubbling up from the pit of his stomach before it moved to burn in his heart. Craig was  _ **his**_ , dammit! Who the hell did Kenny McCormick think he was?? It wasn't a secret that the blonde was a notorious heart-breaker. Tweek had heard all the stories that had traveled around the school for  _ **years**_. Kenny was like a carnivorous spider, people would say. Others compared him to a beautiful siren from Greek mythology. First, he would lure a person in, usually females, with his deep blue eyes and his long blonde eyelashes and his cute freckles and his bright smile and his charismatically charming personality. Then, once you were caught in his web, he'd start to become distant, often disappearing for days at a time. Then, once the person was vulnerable and heartbroken, they'd break up with him. At least they thought so, most had foggy memories of the event. One thing was for sure, it would be like the relationship had never happened. Take Tammy Warner as an example. It had seemed like he had loved her. He hadn't judged her for her reputation, he'd taken her to see the Jonas Brothers in concert, he'd agreed to wear purity rings with her! Then, once she had given him his first BJ, he'd disappeared. He'd been gone for three days. She'd been so hurt that she had texted him that she was done with him. She guessed that he hadn't been impressed with her, so he had decided to avoid her for a few days. She also supposed that she might have reacted a little rashly, without asking him for his side of the story first, but it was in the past now. Kenny was obviously dangerous and now  ** _Craig_**  was the one caught in his web of deceit. Tweek was  ** _not_**  going to let his beautiful Craig become another one of Kenny McCormick's victims. Over his dead body would he let that happen! He had to break them up somehow...but how..? 

 

Gah!! So much pressure!!!!

 

 

Throughout the first part of the school day, Craig walked Kenny to all of the blonde's classes, even if some of his own were on the other side of the school. He obviously didn't care if he was late or not. Kenny thought that was very sweet of him. He'd never had anybody do that for him before. Maybe Craig  ** _was_**  a better choice for him. He didn't think Eric even  ** _knew_**  how to be sweet and caring towards another human being. Just look at the way he treats his own mother! The only thing about this so far that was bothering the blonde was the fact that he didn't have the same feelings towards Craig that he felt for Eric. He really really wanted to, he truly did! He wanted to forget all about Eric Cartman and how much he'd hurt him. He knew that wasn't going to be easy to do however, no matter how much he desired it. It was going to take some time. A lot of time probably. Kenny  **did** , in fact, think that Craig Tucker was attractive, he'd always thought so. The raven had shiny black hair and dark grey-blue eyes. He was a mystery, hardly ever revealing how he was feeling. Even when he did, it was usually in the form of a cynical or deadpan remark, and most often, his middle finger. He intrigued Kenny, making the blonde want to know him a lot more than he already did. He was a clean slate for Kenny and this time his unfortunate deaths wouldn't ruin his relationship since Craig remembered now. It made the blonde feel immense joy. He was excited for what this new relationship could develop into.

 

 

Okay, it was really easy to say that Cartman was severely jealous. Kyle had been able to see it immediately after Kenny and Craig had boarded the bus. It had seemed like Craig had already gotten to the blonde before Cartman'd had the chance to make his first move. However, and this made the redhead smirk smugly, he knew that the blonde's feelings for Craig were  _ **nothing**_  compared to how he felt about Cartman. While he still didn't understand what exactly Kenny saw in the fat asshole that made him appealing, he was still willing to do anything he had to in order to help. Kenny was one of his oldest and closest friends and, as much as he pissed him off on a good day, so was Cartman. Yes, he was still absolutely  ** _furious_**  about what the brunette had done Monday afternoon. Rejection was fine, but the heartless fatass had taken it  ** _way too far_**. Kenny had metaphorically shattered in front of them. Kyle  ** _knew_**  that Kenny had killed himself as a result of it. He blinked as a flashback overcame his senses.

 

 

 

Years prior, he'd been unable to remember a thing.  _"No one can die and then come back to life the day after, that's not science!!"_ , he could remember thinking. However, one day in the fifth grade he'd decided to conduct an experiment. Kenny had been impaled by a wooden fence post that day. Kyle had immediately, after of course yelling the phrase that was unknowingly (to him) infamous, written himself a note on the pad of sticky-notes he kept in his left coat pocket. The note had been fairly simple: "Kenny died today." followed by the current date. That night, before he'd went to bed, he'd stuck the note on his nightstand lamp so he would see it first thing the next morning. The next morning, after he'd turned off his alarm clock, he'd noticed a note on his lamp that he couldn't remember writing. It was  ** _his_**  handwriting though, so he must have! He'd read the simple phrase and taken notice of the date. Eyes wide and breathing labored from fear, he'd repeated the phrase out loud several times until it had finally sunk in. Panicked, he'd rushed through his morning routine before running across the railroad tracks to Kenny's house. Once he'd seen that the blonde was alive, he remembered that he'd sobbed into that bright orange parka like a big baby, repeating himself like a broken record.  _"I remember! I remember! I'm so sorry that I didn't believe you, Kenny! I remember now!"_ , he remembered himself blubbering into the blonde's jacket. The blonde had simply sighed with relief before hugging Kyle tightly and rubbing one hand up and down the redhead's back.  _"It's okay, Kyle, I forgive you. There's no need to get upset, okay? You remember now and that's all that matters to me. So, stop crying okay?"_ , Kenny had replied to his sobs, his muffled voice soothing to Kyle's emotional guilt. He still felt guilty, even now, that he had been ignorant for so long. God, Kenny must have experienced  ** _some_**  form of depression, knowing that no one remembered him dying. He must have felt angry, and hurt, and possibly betrayed by his own friends. Kyle knew that that's how  ** _he_**  would have felt if he had been in Kenny's place. Nowadays, he  ** _could_**  remember his blonde friend's deaths, but sometimes the memory was foggy the day after it happened. The colours and voices sometimes muted. Sometimes the memory was clear and he'd hold Kenny tightly in his arms the next day and just cry into his shoulder while the smiling blonde comforted him. It had taken Stan longer to remember, not until the previous school year in fact. Kyle had done the same experiment with him that he had done himself. After Kenny had died one day, he'd written a note similar to the one he'd written for himself and told Stan to place it where he would immediately see it the next morning. Kyle had gone to Kenny's house the next morning and had found Stan hugging the startled blonde so strongly that he'd lifted the slightly shorter boy off his feet. He hadn't cried like Kyle had, instead he'd been angry at himself for not being able to remember before. Kenny had reassured him as well that he wasn't upset and that he forgave him like he had forgiven Kyle. Now recently as well, Kyle had a sneaking suspicion that Cartman had  ** _always_**  been aware of Kenny's numerous deaths over the years. It was just a feeling he had. The brunette never seemed too concerned the day after Kenny's death, no matter how obviously upset he was in the moments immediately after it happened, but there was this odd clarity...this odd  _ **gleam**_...that would appear in those icy blue eyes when he saw that Kenny was alive again. Stan had agreed with his suspicion, already having noticed the same gleam that Kyle had seen. Neither cared enough about the fat asswipe's opinion to ask him personally, however.

 

Back to the present now. When he'd first heard Cartman's "confession of his feelings" yesterday afternoon, he'd been severely pissed off again. What did that fat fuck think he was doing, playing with Kenny's feelings like that!! Now though, now that he knew that Cartman's feeling for Kenny were in fact  _genuine_ , he felt bad for them a little bit. More so for Kenny, since Cartman had dug himself into this hole and he should really dig  ** _himself_**  out. Kyle was the type of person, however, that constantly felt the need to help and he would feel completely awful if he didn't. That's why he was currently trying to come up with a way to resolve this. He was sitting in the library during his free block, just sitting at one of the tables with a notebook and his favourite pencil. Said pencil was currently being tapped against his pursed lips as he thought. Kenny was obviously really hurt by what had happened, hurt enough to decide that he wanted to try dating Craig Tucker anyway. What could Cartman do to convince Kenny that he was completely serious..? Telling him directly  ** _definitely_**  hadn't worked. Cartman was too dense to try being subtle about it. That's why a lot of his plans went wrong, he just wasn't the best at subtlety.  _"Maybe...no..Hmm...what if he...not a chance...Would it work if he tried....definitely not..."_  Kyle groaned quietly with frustration. He couldn't come up with anything Cartman could ** _actually_**  accomplish!! Dammit, why the fuck was this so hard??? Suddenly, he could hear the music an older student sitting two tables away from him was blasting in his headphones. He experienced a flash of irritation before an idea suddenly came to him. The seventh grade was having a talent show on Friday to end off the school year with something fun! He himself wasn't participating, but he knew that Cartman had already signed up for it! Maybe he could change what he was  ** _going_** to do and write a song about how he feels about Kenny instead!! Grinning excitedly, and probably looking like a crazy person in the process, he pulled out his phone and texted both Stan and Cartman.

 

**From Kyle:**

_Just had an idea. Tell u guys at lunch._

 

He bit his lower lip as he waited for them to reply. After about three minutes, he got an answer from both of them.

 

**From Stan:**

_Roger._

 

**From Fatass:**

>:D  _Sweet._

 

Kyle's grin became a wide smirk. This was going to be awesome!

 

 

Tweek had spent the entire day so far glaring at the back of that blonde dick's head, the flames of jealousy burning in his heart. Unfortunately, Kenny was in  _all_  of the jittery blonde's classes. He sat near the front in almost all of them, right beside Butters who also shared the same classes. Tweek had a sneaking suspicion that Kenny was always copying Butters' test answers, although he didn't really have any solid evidence to back it up. Right now it was his last class before lunch, and this was a class that Craig shared with him too. At one time, he'd sat right beside Tweek and that had made the blonde happy. Now though, he had been moved by the teacher to the desk right beside Kenny so the teacher could keep an eye on him. Now that they were quote on quote  ** _dating_** , the two were holding hands between their desks, only letting go if Kenny had to write something down since he was right handed. It was disgusting. Why couldn't Craig see Kenny for the deceiving snake that he was? He was obviously blinded by Kenny's quote on quote  _beauty_ , just like the others had been at the start. He obviously had no idea what was coming for him in the near future. Tweek had to do something!

 

At lunch, Kenny and Craig sat at a table by themselves. When Craig came back from the lunch line, he slapped an extra tray of lunch in front of the blonde, startling him. "I spent three bucks on that, so you better be grateful and fucking eat it.", he deadpanned as he sat down in front of his own tray. "I can't stand it when you have nothing to eat for lunch. It fucking sickens me. Know that I am  ** _completely_**  serious when I say that I'll force feed you if I have to.." Kenny laughed at him before picking up the fork and beginning to eat what the raven had bought for him. A small smile formed on Craig's face for a moment in response to the happy sound. Over at the boy's table, Kyle was quietly explaining his plan to Stan and Cartman. "....Maybe if he hears you sing it in front of the entire school, it'll finally sink in that you're serious about liking him..", Kyle was saying, after swallowing his mashed potatoes. The other two were both quiet as they thought over what had been said to them. Stan spoke up first. "That... might actually work...Cartman's actually pretty good at coming up with lyrics on the spot..." Cartman smirked at his redheaded friend. "Not bad, Jewboy, not bad...", he smirked as he stroked an invisible goatee with two fingers. "I'll write a rough draft tonight and let you read over it tomorrow..." Kyle nodded. "Make sure you include all the things you like about him. Compliment him without reiterating what you've already confessed to him. We want him to feel flattered, not piss him off further.." Cartman waved a hand dismissively. "Yeah, Yeah. I got it.." Butters suddenly settled into the seat on Cartman's other side that wasn't being occupied by Stan. "Hey fellas, have you guys noticed anything weird going on with Tweek..?", he asked once he was seated. Kyle and Cartman both shook their heads 'no'. "Why? Have you..?", Stan asked. "That's why I was asking you fellers. Tweek's been glaring at Kenny all day so far...oh jeez, look! He's doing it right now!" All four of them looked down at the other end of the table where Tweek was sitting. "Dude..that is one  _hell_  of a glare...", Stan whispered in awe. "He's barely even twitching..", Kyle added, eyes wide with amazement. "I'm surprised Kinny hasn't been set on fire yet..", Cartman chimed in with a soft snort. "What's his problem?", Kyle asked Butters with his eyebrows raised. "Well, it ain't no secret that Tweek still has feelings for Craig...my guess is that he's jealous.." Stan frowned. "Why would Tweek be jealous? He and Craig broke up for good in the fifth grade...Craig's obviously moved on..." Kyle nodded in agreement. "Because he's a wimpy  ** _bitch_**  that only fights back if he's forced to..", Cartman scoffed with a sneer. Kyle frowned as he thought for a moment. "I have a bad feeling about this..", he spoke up quietly. He got confused looks. "Jealous people do crazy things out of anger...things that can really hurt people...and he's got his sights set on Kenny...", he explained. All four went silent as they absorbed that information. Cartman was the one to break the silence. "Motherfucker!"

 

 

 

After lunch, in the hour break they were given before classes started up again, Tweek followed Kenny around with his cell phone camera prepped and ready to use. All he needed was a little bit of evidence to prove that Kenny was a notorious whore so Craig would break up with him. For awhile, he had nothing. Kenny was just standing with Craig near his friends, who were all on their phones. Then Kenny separated himself from Craig and went back into the building to grab something from his locker. Tweek silently followed, keeping himself out of Kenny's line of sight. The blonde went to his locker alright, but he wasn't alone for long. Out of nowhere, Bebe walked around the corner and headed right to him. "Hey Kenny!", she greeted him cheerfully. He lifted his head to look at her. "Oh, hey Bebe!", he smiled at her. She stood right next to him as he grinned at him. "I just wanted to thank you personally for that cake you made for the cheer leading squad last week in Home Ec. It was really good, everyone loved it! Wendy was wondering if you'd make it again for us!" His smile widened. "I'd love to! Just let me know when you want it!" She clapped happily before suddenly hugging him tightly. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Kenny hugged her back with a laugh. "You're welcome, welcome, welcome!!" Suddenly, she lowered her hands until half of her fingers had slipped passed the waist of his jeans. Tweek quickly snapped a photo. Bingo. Then he quickly fled so he wouldn't look suspicious. If he had stayed just a second longer, he would have seen Kenny push Bebe away with an annoyed expression on his now flushed face. She giggled. "Sorry! You just have a really nice ass!" He sighed before closing his locker and heading back outside to rejoin Craig.

 

Tweek smirked from his hiding place behind a tree in the corner of the school yard. This was  ** _exactly_**  what he needed to have not only Craig feel betrayed by Kenny, but to have  ** _Clyde_**  pissed off at him as well. "Gah!!"

 

 

(End of Chapter Four)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!!


	5. Accusations and Apologies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tweek's plan goes into action.

(Sorry if anybody is too OOC..)

  
Thursday morning, once Craig had separated from Kenny so they could go to their separate lockers, he was immediately joined by Clyde who's locker was right next to his. "Hey, man. You and Kenny have officially been dating for a whole 24 hours! How's it feel?", Clyde asked him cheerfully with a dorky grin. Craig shrugged. "It hasn't been long enough to tell yet, you know? We haven't spent much time alone together to judge anything..." With that he and Clyde both opened their lockers. Something fluttered down from each of the front vents down to the floor. They looked at each other for a moment before both picking up the scraps of paper. Clyde looked at it first. His face paled before flushing bright red with anger. "I had a feeling those rumors were fucking true!! I'm going to fucking kill that white trash whore!!", he snapped, eyes ablaze with rage. "What the fuck is your problem?", Craig asked with an eyebrow raised. "Look at it! You've been lied to!" Craig turned the photo over to see what the fuss was about. His eyes narrowed as dark eyes filled with an icy anger. "What the fuck.", he said flatly.

 

Kenny was happy and cheerful as he met with Stan and Kyle at their lockers. "Hey guys! What's up!" They both smiled at him. Kyle shrugged. "Nothing much, Ken...helping Fatass with his talent show act...that's about it..." Stan nodded in agreement. Kenny tilted his head to one side. "What's he going to do..?" The other two shared a quick glance before they both answered, "He's singing a song he wrote himself..", in perfect unison. Kenny visibly shivered. "Don't  ** _do_**  that! That's fucking creepy! Like the twins from The Shining.." There was a pause, then all three of them burst out laughing. Eric walked over during this. "What's so funny?" Kenny immediately went silent. Kyle and Stan quieted down too in response to the blonde's sudden silence. "Nothing, fatass...", Kyle sighed. The brunette frowned before shrugging. "I just saw Tweek at his locker. He looked oddly pleased about something...", he shared a knowing look with Kyle and Stan. Kenny looked confused for a moment, not getting it.

 

  
"MCCORMICK!!!", Craig bellowed as he angrily approached the quartet, Clyde right behind him. "I didn't want to believe the rumors about you, especially when  _ **that**_  fat fuck hurt you, but now I don't have a fucking choice do I?", he growled. Kenny looked at him, genuinely confused. "What?" Clyde stepped forward furiously. "Don't play stupid! You know what you did!" Kyle stepped forward to defend his friend. "He obviously has  ** _no_**  idea what you're talking about, so why don't you ju-" Craig immediately cut him off. "Shut the fuck up, Broflovski! This is none of your fucking business!!" Kyle's face coloured. "He's one of my best friends!! If someone's going to treat him like trash, you bet your ass it's my fucking business!!" Stan stepped forward as well, offering silent support. Cartman seemed to sense that he'd only make things worse, so he bit his tongue for once. Honestly, he was more concerned about Kenny. The blonde had already gone through one emotional bombshell, Cartman wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle a second in the span of only a few days. Craig refocused on Kenny. "I can't believe I let myself open up to you..I should have listened to Token's warnings...Why don't you just do what I tried to stop on Monday..? Hopefully, I'll forget this time..go to hell, you piece of shit.. _ **and stay there**_..." Kenny's eyes widened.  _"....No...please...not again...NOT AGAIN..."_ The blonde forced himself to look Craig in the eyes. "Y-You think I'm a wh-whore..? Th-Then I guess you  _ **don't**_ know me as w-well as you think you do..." Then he took off running until he reached the exit. For all he cared at that moment, school could go fuck itself. Cartman started to go after him. "Where the fuck are  _ **you**_  going, fatass?", Craig asked angrily. Cartman stopped to give the raven a look of complete disdain. "I'm going after someone who  _ **needs**_ me, because this time the asshole isn't  _ **me**_ , Tucker, it's  _ **you**_." With that, he ran after the fleeing blonde to the best of his ability...

 

  
....Which didn't get him very far, unfortunately. One of the disadvantages of being slightly overweight. He was about maybe a block away from the school with no idea of where Kenny had gone.  _"Okay, think Eric. Kenny's your best friend. You know him better than even Stan and Kyle do. Where would he go..?"_  He bit his lip as he thought hard, going over his memories of Kenny. Then it hit him:  _Stark's Pond_. That was Kenny's favourite place to hide when he was upset. He took off running again, ignoring the discomfort in his legs. It was times like this that he desperately wished his life was a video game. He could really use a fast travel system right about now. After taking several breaks and feeling like he was choking on his lungs, he finally reached the trail that led to the pond. He decided to walk now so he didn't sound like an unfit slob when he finally found the blonde he was looking for. 

 

As soon as the pond was in view, so was the orange blob with blonde hair curled up in the snow. He sighed with relief as he approached the blonde's head, the snow crunching under his black winter boots. Not caring about his ass getting wet, he plopped said ass into the snow, sitting next to the blonde's head. Kenny opened his eyes and lifted himself up onto his forearms, spotting the brunette instantly. Seriously. He was hard to miss or overlook. "Wh-What are you doing here..?", he asked emotionlessly. "Making sure you're okay, dumbass. Forget, just for now, about our fighting okay? Right now, I'm just your 'Super Best friend', that's it...Now get your poor ass over here so I can hug you.." Kenny was looking at him with surprise written all over his face, his eyes wide. Eric tried to keep a serious expression on his own face, but he could feel his lips twitching as he fought a smile. Then Kenny suddenly burst into loud laughter, rolling onto his back as he laughed. Eric knew he was done for then, immediately joining in on the blonde's contagious laughter. After a minute or so, both fell into a comfortable silence. Until Kenny decided to break it, of course. "Was that a legit offer for a hug..? 'C-Cuz...I-I could really use one right now...", he spoke up, unusually timid and unsure. Eric cleared his throat before opening his arms for a hug. "Git your po' ass over here, Kinny..", he commanded, his voice light and teasing.

 

  
He was completely unprepared for the familiar weight that crashed into him. It completely knocked the breath out of him for a moment. He automatically wrapped his arms around the thinner boy a second later, feeling like he could shield him from the world. He wished that were true. It took him a moment to realize that the blonde was sobbing uncontrollably into his shoulder. "Kinny..?", he asked hesitantly. "I'm s-sorry...I..I ruin  _ **everything**_..." Eric was quick to try and tell him otherwise. Kenny just shook his head rapidly. "I do! I ruined our friendship because of my stupidity!! I created that reputation because I kept dying!! If I hadn't, Craig wouldn't have any bad rumors to believe over me!! You know as well as I do that my virginity is as untouched as..." Eric smiled sadly as he cut him off, uncharacteristically gentle. "As freshly fallen snow with a single trail of new footprints...I  _ **do**_  know that...and if Craig loved you like you said that he said he did, he would have known that...you know that right..?" Kenny lifted his red, tear-stained face so he could look Eric in the eyes. "What are you s-saying..?" The brunette swallowed nervously.  _"Tell him!_ _ **Tell him**_ _! Make him believe you!! TELL HIM YEW PUSSY!!!!"_ , his conscience screamed at him. It sounded more like himself now and less like Kyle. The Kyle voice must have represented his guilty conscience then. "A-All I'm saying, Kinny...is that you shouldn't forget that you have friends who care about your bony ass....people like Stan, and Kahl, and..and Butters.......and  _ **m-me**_....", he cleared his throat to try and take the quaver out of his voice. " ** _We_**  don't believe those fucking retarded rumors because we know the  _ **real**_  you. The  _ **real**_ Kenny McCormick is sweet, and funny, and...and  _ **loyal**_ , and the  _ **best**_  friend a guy like me didn't ask for, but was blessed with anyway....dammit, Kinny...you're making me all mushy!" Kenny started giggling at the light-hearted accusation then fell silent as he sobered up again. "Did you really mean all that stuff..?" Eric's expression was one hundred percent serious as he nodded in confirmation. Kenny smiled a little. "I-I'm willing to forgive,  _ **for now**_...I'd rather have my SBF than no one at all...after this is st-still up for debate, though..." Eric nodded in agreement. "I think I'm going to play hooky with you today, so you're not alone..." Kenny smiled as he lowered his face back into the brunette's shoulder.  _"You can let yourself pretend, Kenny....just for now..."_ , he thought. Eric pulled out his phone and texted Kyle, telling him that his song draft was in his notebook in his locker...as well as to give Craig  _ **hell**_ for hurting Kenny.  _"Just pretend for now, Eric....enjoy it while you can..."_ , he thought as he tightened his hold on the blonde in his arms.

 

**Eric: 1    Craig: 1**

 

  
"WHAT THE  _ **FUCK**_  IS YOUR MALFUNCTION, TUCKER!!!! WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU BREAK HIS HEART LIKE THAT AFTER HE WAS FINALLY STARTING TO RECOVER FROM THE  _ **FIRST**_  FUCKING TIME!!!!", Kyle yelled angrily, fire burning bright in his emerald green eyes. His fists were clenched tightly against his sides as he gave the raven a look of complete  _ **death**_. "AND  _ **YOU**_ , CLYDE, WHAT IS  _ **YOUR**_  FUCKING PROBLEM!!", he added as he moved that look to the brunette standing behind his friend. Craig didn't seem phased by the shorter boy's glare, returning it with one of his own, but Clyde was starting to look like he was going to pee himself. Craig practically shoved the photo into the redhead's face. " ** _THIS_**  is my quote on fucking quote  _ **malfunction**_!!", he snapped. Kyle studied the picture for a moment before his eyes narrowed and a red tint appeared in his cheeks. "Are you fucking serious..?", his voice was now quiet and cold. Stan sweat dropped. He knew that when Kyle was angry, the 'quiet voice' was  _ **more**_  dangerous than the yelling. It meant he was severely pissed off to the point where he was ready to commit full on manslaughter with the closest sharp object."You broke up with him because of  ** _THIS_**!!" He was on the verge of kicking Craig's ass himself, his whole body trembling with pure rage. Stan put a hand gently on Kyle's left shoulder but Kyle shrugged it off. Stan shrugged with a soft sigh. Once Kyle got like  _ **this**_ , there was no calming him down until he was finished. "All this...this  _ **garbage**_..proves is that Bebe can't keep her hands to herself!!!" Clyde frowned in response. "Hey, don't blame her! Everyone at this school knows what kind of reputation Kenny McCormick has!!", he snapped. Kyle started laughing harshly. "What's so fucking funny?", Craig demanded, confusion bleeding into his leftover anger. "If either of you knew Kenny personally, like you said  _ **you**_  did Craig, you would know that Kenny's a virgin in every sense of the word except for mentally! The only sexual act he had with another person was in the fourth grade when Tammy Warner gave him a blow job outside TGI Friday's!" Confusion was plain on Clyde's face, evident by his sudden silence. Craig was obviously still not buying it, so Kyle decided that he needed to pull out the big guns. "Craig, I would have thought that you would have connected the dots by now considering what you  _ **know**_!", he taunted, giving the raven a knowing look. "Craig? What's he talking about? What do you know that you didn't tell me..?", Clyde spoke up, but his words fell onto deaf ears. Craig was too busy staring at Kyle as he tried to make sense of the redhead's subtle hint. It was obvious when it finally clicked. His face went completely white and his eyes widened with horror. All those times...they'd said that he'd just disappeared, sometimes for days at a time....no...that wasn't completely true, was it? Kenny hadn't just disappeared to be a heartless dick....all those times....Kenny....Kenny had  _ **died**_.  Craig swallowed before speaking again, his anger completely drained away and replaced with a terrible fear. "K-Kyle..? Wh-What happened after Tammy gave him a blow job..?", he asked hesitantly, afraid of the answer. Kyle's eyes never left his own, the gaze hard and calculating. "Syphilis happened, presenting itself in its final and most  _ **fatal**_  stage. He died the day after he got it, the day after she did it, and he didn't come back to life for three days.", he answered coldly. "Died..? What..?", they heard Clyde mutter in the background, neither paying attention to him. "Fuck...", Craig choked out, guilt and regret trapping his heart in an icy grip, squeezing like a vice. "Congratulations, Craig. You're now the new Cartman.", Kyle smirked cruelly. "Are you happy with yourself?"  


 

Stan spoke up suddenly, interrupting whatever was happening now. "Guys, where did you even get those anyway?", he asked, crossing his arms. He had Clyde's attention immediately. "They were in our lockers when we opened them earlier...why?" Craig slowly moved so he was looking at the other raven as well. "Did you ever think that maybe, just maybe, someone took a picture at that exact second and then planted them on purpose because they knew it would cause what just happened?" He shared a knowing look with Kyle before they both looked back at the other two boys. Clyde responded first. "Why would someone want to do that?  _ **Who**_  would want to do that?" Kyle was the one who answered that one. "According to Butters, as well as us two and Cartman as later witnesses, Tweek was glaring at Kenny all day yesterday. Then this morning on the way back from his own locker, Cartman reported that Tweek was looking oddly pleased about something..There's a huge possibility that  _ **he**_  did this because he was jealous. He knew this would make you kick Kenny to the curb like garbage, which is what you just did. You proved him right." Craig immediately scowled as his rage returned at full force. "That motherfucker!! I thought we were  _ **both**_  over it! He better have a  _ **damn**_  good reason for this!" Then the late bell for Homeroom sounded and they all scurried to their respective rooms, Kyle's face red with embarrassment at being late.   


 

Tweek better watch his back. Craig was  ** _not_**  happy about what he, and admittedly himself, had done. He would not confront his ex-ex-boyfriend today. Firstly, and more importantly, he had to make his new ex-boyfriend forgive him somehow for being an easily manipulated ass and somehow convince him to take him back. Not even  _ **Eric Cartman**_  was going to be able to stop him. He'd make sure of it.  


 

  
Playing hooky was a  _ **lot**_  more fun, Eric decided, when you had someone to slack off  _ **with**_! Especially if that someone was  ** _Kenny McCormick_**. Kenny knew the ins and outs of almost the entire town, including the forest around it, so he knew  _ **all**_  the places two thirteen year old boys could go to have their own kind of fun without having to pay for it. They ended up all over South Park, kicking over trash cans, switching peoples' mail, petting every single stray cat they encountered, as well as a bunch of other stupid shit, before finally ending up at Kenny's house. It was around eleven in the morning now and they had run out of things to do. Eric ended up sitting on the front step while Kenny ran inside to grab a few things. He had three unread text messages from Kyle:

 

**From Jew:**

_How's Kenny?_

 

**From Jew:**

_Craig knows it was Tweek. Be prepared. He might come looking for forgiveness._   

 

**From Jew:**

_Ur song looks good. I just corrected ur grammar and fixed some spelling mistakes. This is going to make him really happy, especially after what happened this morning.._

 

He listened for any returning footsteps before replying to all three with one message:

 

**From Eric:**

_He's doing fine, all things considered. That chullo-wearing prick_ _**BETTER** _ _not upset him further or I swear to the Lord above that I_ _**will** _ _kill him. Good, that's why I wrote it._

 

Surprising him, a reply came back almost immediately:

 

**From Jew:**

_In Study Hall. Ha, almost had a close call earlier. I was ready to stab him in the neck with my fav pencil. Clyde too. Keep Ken busy. Stan and I will find u guys after school._

 

**From Eric:**

_K_

 

He quickly slipped his phone back into his coat pocket as Kenny returned with his arms full of random stuff. "Were you texting somebody?", the blonde asked immediately. Eric silently cursed. Kenny had moments of acute observation at the worst of times, the brunette swore to God above that he did. "Yeah, Kahl was worried about you...said him and the hippie would meet up with us after skewl.." Kenny nodded before putting down the stuff he'd been holding. He had an unopened box of poptarts, which he insisted wouldn't be missed; they had like six boxes of them, his old PSP that Eric had tried to take from him in the fourth grade, a couple of games for the PSP, and a notebook and pencil. Eric gave him a curious look, an eyebrow raised. "What exactly are we going to be doing..?" Kenny beamed at him. "Play games and tally who wins each time!" The brunette grinned. "Sweet. We need a prize. A prize that the winner would be willing to kick fucking  ** _ass_**  for.." The blonde grinned back. "Agreed.." The two spent the next few minutes trying to think of something good. Finally, something  ** _awesome_**  popped up in Eric's head. "The winner gets to write a nasty word anywhere on the loser's body with Sharpie, including areas where it would be completely visible.", he spoke up proudly, crossing his arms. Kenny laughed before nodding in agreement. For the next two hours, they passed the PSP back and forth as they took turns playing all of Kenny's games while snacking on the poptarts and occasionally marking a tally in their respective columns. They started out neck and neck, but soon Kenny began to pull ahead by three tallies. As one-thirty rolled around, they were out of poptarts and it was obvious that Kenny was going to win their little competition. He was already thinking of the  ** _perfect_**  word that he was going to write as big as possible on Eric's forehead, where  ** _everyone_**  would see it. Suddenly, Eric's phone buzzed and while Kenny was distracted, he quickly checked it:

 

**From Jew:**

_Mayday! Craig snuck out of lunch! He's probably on his way to you guys!_

 

It was from 20 minutes ago. Dammit! Stupid fucking poor people connection!

 

The sound of sidewalk salt crunching beneath snow boots could suddenly be heard. They came closer and closer to them before stopping completely. Eric was the first to look in the direction of the noise. He stood up immediately once he saw the source of the sound, clenching his fists tightly against his sides once his phone was back in his coat pocket. Craig was standing on the other side of the railroad tracks, his hands in his coat pockets. His dark eyes were fixated on Kenny before they slowly gravitated over to Eric instead. He gave the brunette a glare that Eric returned tenfold, his upper lip curling into a sneer. Noticing his friend's sudden silence, Kenny turned his head to look at Eric. He raised an eyebrow when he noticed that the bigger boy was now standing and facing away from him. His larger body was preventing the blonde from seeing what he was looking at, so he simply leaned forward so he could peer around his heaviest friend. He immediately froze when he locked gazes with  ** _Craig Tucker_**. His heart, held together by scotch tape at this point, twisted painfully in his chest. Craig took a step forward onto the tracks, his eyes never leaving Kenny's face. It was obvious that the blonde was still feeling hurt and that he wasn't too thrilled to see Craig again so soon. Eric's hackles immediately rose, making him feel like a defensive cat. "Eey! Don't you  ** _dare_**  get  ** _any_**  fucking closer or I  ** _will_**  kick your ass!!", he threatened angrily as he stood his ground. He moved into a fighting stance to back up his words. Craig paused for a moment as he gave the brunette the most acidic glare he could muster. "I just want to talk to Kenny for a moment, you fat cuntrag!", he snapped, mildly irritated. Eric scoffed, "Haven't you done  ** _enough_**  talking, you fucking choad??" Craig bared his teeth as he tightened his hands into fists at his sides. "This doesn't even concern you, asshole! You were the one who hurt him in the first fucking place! You have no right to suddenly want to kiss up to him now! I made a  ** _huge_**  mistake and I've come to fix it!", he stepped closer and closer as he spoke until he was a foot or two away from Eric. "It's more than  ** _you've_**  ever done, dickbag! All  ** _you_**  know how to do is hurt!" Eric was trembling with rage now, his fingernails digging into his uncovered palms. "Mistake..?", Kenny spoke up quietly, confused and just barely daring to hope.. The other boys jumped a little, like they had forgotten he was still there. "Yeah. Turns out that Tweek planted evidence in mine and Clyde's lockers to make you look bad. It worked unfortunately. Kyle knocked some sense into me, though...made me realize the truth that I'd overlooked..", Craig answered. Guilt and regret filled his face as he was forced to look around the fat fuck in his vision in order to look into Kenny's eyes. "I should have trusted you enough to know better...I'm so sorry, Ken...I didn't mean to hurt you...can you forgive me..?" Eric turned around to look at Kenny's reaction to this. Fuck, he was obviously buying into Craig's  ** _'heartfelt'_**  apology. Dammit! While defending Kenny's honor, Kyle must have said something to make Craig want to fix what he'd done!  _"This is why you don't depend on Jews to be the hard-hitters!"_ , he thought bitterly, not entirely meaning it this time. Kyle was the one who had come up with the plan to help Eric get back into Kenny's good graces after all, and Eric  ** _was_**  grateful that the redhead had chosen to help  ** _him_**  instead of Craig.

 

He sighed as he watched Kenny get up and run into Craig's outstretched arms, sobbing into the raven's shoulder once he was there. "I forgive you...I forgive you...", he gasped inbetween sobs. Craig wrapped his arms around the relieved blonde, rubbing his back and shushing him every few seconds. "It's alright, Ken...there's no need to cry...I'm just glad that you're willing to forgive me....I feel like I'm half a heart without you now that I know what it feels like  ** _to_**  have you..." He then raised his eyes to meet the angry brunette's gaze. He flashed him a smug grin filled with metal before refocusing himself back on Kenny. Eric growled softly under his breath, acknowledging that he'd been defeated. For now anyway. Now, he was even more eager for what he had in store the following day. The last day of seventh grade was going to go out with a bang. He'd make sure of it.

 

**Eric: 1    Craig: 2**

 

 

  (End of Chapter Five)  


	6. The Last Day of Seventh Grade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Craig decides to show Kenny just how much he likes him and Cartman sings the song he wrote for the talent show.

(I really like the thought of Kenny being close to Butters and calling him a nickname for his  ** _real_**  name, which is Leopold in case you didn't know, instead of the nickname everyone else calls him. So he calls him "Leo" instead of "Butters". So the only time you'll see "Leo" instead of "Butters", outside of dialogue and/or if Butters narrates it in his pov, is if it's Kenny's point of view.  :D)

 

It was officially the last day of the school year. While it was still the length of a normal school day, all the classes were shortened until lunch. After lunch was the seventh grade talent show, which would be performed in front of the entire student body.

 

 

For Craig, the last day of school came with a hopeful heart that he kept hidden behind his usual poker face. Kenny's uncovered hand was warm in his own as they walked from the blonde's house to the bus stop. He couldn't believe, looking back on his frantic search for Kenny the day before, how much he had missed that warmth. It made his skin tingle in an oddly pleasant way that he was starting to become addicted to. Thank God Kenny had been willing to forgive him so quickly. Although he knew that Kenny didn't like him completely in the same way that Craig had grown attached to  _ **him**_ , it had almost seemed like the blonde had been just as lost as  ** _he_**  had been. Maybe it  _ **was**_  possible for Kenny to form those feelings on his own. Kenny had already told him that all his other friends were going on week long vacations throughout the summer. Considering Craig's family wasn't planning on going anywhere, there was a good possibility that they could bond over the summer. First though, he'd have to reel the blonde in so Eric Cartman would be the  _ **last**_  thing on his mind. What he had in mind would probably get him punched in the face, Kenny  _ **had**_  once been Mysterion after all and the instinct to attack if one was feeling threatened was one that never truly disappeared, but it would be worth it if Kenny just let it happen. Wow...now he sounded like a total creep..

 

(BUTTERS IS SO CUTE!!!)

 

He was brought out of his head by a familiar voice calling out to them. "Hey there, fellas!! Beautiful morning, isn't it? Mind if I join you?" It was Butters, who had literally  ** _just_**  walked out his front door. He had a bright smile on his face and a twinkle in his baby blue eyes. Craig thought it was  _ **way**_ too fucking early to be  _ **that**_ goddamn cheerful. 

 

Kenny returned the other blonde's smile with one of his own. "Morning Leo! I don't mind at all, but Craig might....Craig?" The raven now had two sets of blue eyes looking his way. He exhaled out of his nose. "I don't give a fuck..", he answered after a moment of silence. Kenny snorted as Butters beamed, jogging over to them. "I'm so happy you two worked things out! It would've been a real shame if Tweek had won...", Butters said once he'd reached them. "I can't believe he did it in the first place...", Kenny muttered with a sigh. Craig glared at the sidewalk as they started walking. " _ **I**_  can.....well  _ **now**_  anyway..", he grumbled darkly. Kenny squeezed his hand reassuringly and he felt a little better. His glare lightened and he lifted his eyes to meet Kenny's deep blue ones. The blonde flashed him a warm smile that he returned with a smaller quirk of his own lips.

 

Butters smiled awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head for a moment, not liking that he'd accidentally made Craig upset. Then he noticed that the raven's mood had improved slightly, so his smile smoothed out as he resumed his cheerfulness. He and Kenny chatted about whatever popped into their heads as the three walked the rest of the block to the school bus stop, Craig content with being silent and just watching Kenny be his normal happy self. Nothing made him feel happier than seeing  ** _his_**  beautiful Kenny happy.

 

On the bus, and once they were actually at school, Craig avoided  ** _any_**  interaction with Tweek that could possibly occur. He avoided making eye contact with him, he dodged him in the hallways, he tried not to even  ** _look_**  in the blonde's direction if he could help it. He acknowledged that he was probably being an unfair jerk, but he knew that if he interacted with Tweek in  ** _any_**  way, he'd end up either punching him in the face or strangling him to death with his winter scarf. The second option seemed more likely, he was  ** _that_**  angry and disgusted with the jittery blonde. Which is why he wanted to avoid interaction, he knew that Tweek couldn't rise from the dead like Kenny could. It would technically be murder then and he would rather not have to deal with that. That would just be a complete pain in the ass.

 

On Kenny's side of things, the blonde was continuously getting the feeling that his three best friends all knew something that they weren't telling him. His evidence was the knowing glances Kyle, Stan, and Eric kept giving each other all morning when they thought Kenny wasn't paying attention. Oh, but he was. He was  ** _absolutely_**  paying attention and it frustrated him. He  even tried asking Leo if he knew anything. The other blonde told him that he was sorry but he didn't have a clue. It was usually easy to tell when Leo was lying, because he kind of stunk at it, so Kenny believed him. He didn't understand. Why were his friends keeping something from him? Didn't they trust him? It was already odd that Stan and Kyle would be sharing a secret with  ** _Eric Cartman_**  of all people, but not letting Kenny in on it? That was even weirder and unusual, it just didn't make sense! Most of all, though, was that Kenny felt hurt that they didn't trust him enough to tell him what was going on. They were supposed to be his  ** _best friends_**  and he normally didn't hide anything from  ** _them_**. Craig picked up on the blonde's sadness in the class they shared together before lunch, deciding immediately that he would put his plan into action during their time outside. He didn't like seeing the normally cheerful blonde looking so sad.

 

Kyle picked up on it as well, making him feel incredibly guilty. He knew that what they were doing was going to make Kenny feel really happy in the end, but he still felt bad that their secrecy was obviously hurting the blonde's feelings. That wasn't their intention at all! He just hoped he could keep his mouth shut until it was time for them to perform Cartman's song. He didn't want to accidentally blab about it because he felt guilty about making Kenny feel sad, that would ruin everything! Please, oh please, let the time until the talent show go by quickly!

 

 

 

During lunch, Kenny just sat with Craig at their table and didn't touch the food the raven had bought for him. It made Craig, as well as Kyle, keep looking at the clock impatiently, both wanting the time to pass quicker for different reasons. Both had the same thought however: get that sad look off of Kenny's face.

 

Butters kept glancing at Kenny every few seconds, a frown on his face and his baby blue eyes filled with worry and concern. He didn't know what the other three boys were up to, but whatever it was, they were going about it the wrong way in his opinion. And that was coming from  ** _Professor Chaos_**  as well as his normal self. Eric keeping secrets wasn't anything new, but  ** _Stan_**  and  ** _Kyle_**  doing it now was something that was unheard of. The blonde didn't like it. He didn't like it one bit. Kenny was one of the only people that Butters knew that accepted him completely one hundred percent as a true friend. The others seemed to tolerate him enough to consider him a sort-of-friend, but they didn't really listen to him like Kenny did. They didn't pay attention to him like Kenny did. Kenny is the ** _only_**  person he knows that calls him by anything related to his real name. His parents do sometimes, but it's rare, even if he's in serious trouble they rarely say it. They call him "Butters" like everyone else does. Everyone but Kenny. Kenny calls him "Leo", which makes him feel like he'd swallowed that weird bubbly drink from Willy Wonka. Like he was happy enough that he could just float away. He sighed as he glanced at Kenny once again. Should he confront the other three about what they were doing? Or just wait until the problem was solved on its own? It wasn't really his business he supposed, and it was Craig's job now to cheer Kenny up again. He just hoped that the stoic raven could handle it...

 

 

Finally, lunchtime was over and they were free to spend time outside for an hour until it was time to get ready for the talent show. Immediately, Craig dragged Kenny off to a place where no one would see them. Once they reached the perfect place, a corner of the schoolyard hidden by the building itself with a Cherry Blossom tree right in the corner, Craig let go of the blonde's hand and then turned around to face Kenny's confused expression. "Why did you drag me over  _here_?", the blonde questioned as soon as Craig was facing him again, gesturing towards the half-dead tree. "Because I wanted to do something with you that I didn't want anyone else to see..", Craig answered honestly. Kenny raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to ask another question, but before he could, Craig seized his opportunity. Grabbing the front of Kenny's parka with both hands, he pulled the blonde forward and mashed their lips together as he closed his eyes. His heart raced as he waited for the blonde to react.

 

Kenny's eyes widened as far as physically possible as he tried to process what was happening. Craig...Craig was  ** _kissing_**  him!! Holy Fucking Shit!!! He was losing his first kiss, with a boy, to  ** _Craig Tucker_** , something he'd never imagined would happen!! It...It was really nice actually.. Craig's lips were warm and slightly chapped from the cold. He smelled like cheap laundry detergent and cheap cologne. Kenny allowed his eyes to slip closed as he immersed himself in the sensations he was feeling. Instinctively, he moved his head so their lips fit together in a way that felt more natural.

 

 _"He..He's kissing back!!"_ , Craig realized with sudden elation. Hesitantly, afraid the blonde would suddenly push him away, he moved his lips gently against Kenny's, feeling pure joy when Kenny's lips moved in response. The blonde's lips were soft and slightly chapped from the cold air surrounding them. The raven could smell sweat and whatever cologne Cartman had bought Kenny for Christmas the previous year as their lips moved gently against each other. With every puff of exhaled air that escaped their mouths, Craig could smell mint, from the piece of gum Butters had given Kenny earlier that day, on the blonde's breath. Then, testing the waters, he opened his mouth a bit more and traced along Kenny's lower lip with the tip of his tongue. Automatically, Kenny parted his lips once more in response to allow that tongue access. That's when things went into overdrive. Kenny suddenly pulled Craig closer as their tongues battled for dominance. He wrapped one arm around the taller boy's neck and grabbed onto the collar of Craig's blue jacket with his other hand. He then slipped his fingers under the blue fabric of the other boy's chullo hat so he could tangle his fingers in Craig's black hair. Craig let go of the orange material he had been holding, wrapping his arms around the blonde instead. He cupped the back of Kenny's head with one hand and rested the other against the small of Kenny's back. His long fingers tangled themselves in golden blonde strands as he pulled the blonde closer so their chests were flush against each other. He could feel Kenny's heart racing in time with his own, his blood like liquid fire in his veins. The hand on Kenny's back tightened into a fist, clenching around the orange fabric, while his other hand gently tugged on Kenny's hair. His already shallow breathing hitched as he felt his own hair be pulled in response as the blonde wrapped his other arm around the raven's neck as well. 

 

Then Kenny did something that caught him completely by surprise. He started running the tip of his tongue along the braces on Craig's upper set of teeth, gently tracing the metal band and each individual bracket until he reached the other side. A strange flash of heat traveled through the raven's body, causing a soft moan to escape his throat. Kenny seemed pleased by the sound that he had caused Craig to make. He made a humming sound in response before moving onto the braces on Craig's lower set of teeth, tracing the shape of each tooth as well as he made his way to the side opposite of where he'd started. Craig couldn't think straight, his brain sending jumbled messages to the rest of his trembling body. He was just a mess of jumbled electrical signals that were making his nerves burn with an intense heat. He felt like he was overheating as he moved forward and pressed the blonde's back against the trunk of the Cherry Blossom tree behind them, causing Kenny to grunt from the sudden impact. He slowly opened his eyes as they both pulled slightly away from each other to able to breathe better. He found that Kenny had done the same, looking right back into Craig's eyes. The raven was immediately entranced. Those deep blue eyes were so bottomless and so alluring to the raven who was completely helpless to their power. Likewise, Kenny found himself lost in Craig's dark grey-blue irises. Neither had the willpower to look away for awhile as they both panted softly. Then the spell was broken as they both blinked and moved away from each other. Kenny dropped onto his ass, his back still against the tree trunk, as Craig immediately followed suit. They spent the rest of that hour talking about their interests, seated side by side beneath the half-dead Cherry Blossom tree with the memory of their first kiss together fresh in their minds.

 

**Eric: 1   Craig: 3**

 

(Credit to Matt Stone and Trey Parker for their songs "Put it Down" and "Cartman's Suicide Rap" from which I based the rapping parts of the song off of :D)

 

(Also credit to the band Bring Me The Horizon for their song "Can You Feel My Heart?" which I  took inspiration from for the chorus of the song :D)

 

The entire auditorium was completely filled up as the entire school got ready for the talent show the seventh graders had spent weeks preparing for. All the students that had signed up to perform were hanging out backstage, just waiting for their turn. Eric peeked out from a small opening in the stage curtain, quickly scanning the crowd. He spotted who he was looking for almost immediately. Kenny and that asshole Craig Tucker were seated side by side, Craig playing with Kenny's fingers and making the blonde giggle into his other hand. Something had happened during the hour outside, Eric was sure of it. Craig had dragged Kenny off somewhere and now they were acting like a legit couple!! What the fuck had happened??? Goddammit!! Butters had distracted him by babbling on and on to him about his stupid talent show act!! Why had he allowed that to happen???? Son of a Bitch!!!

 

Performance after performance went by with equal amounts of cheering and booing.  Poetry from the Goth Kids, Wendy reciting Shakespeare, singing, dancing, Bebe doing a new cheerleading routine with Red and Nichole, Clyde trying to shoot basketball baskets, Heidi weaving  ** _actual_**  baskets, yo-yo tricks, fidget spinner tricks, Jimmy telling jokes, Tweek playing a song on the piano, blah blah fucking BLAH!!! None of this interested Eric in the slightest. Although, Butters dressing up as his female alter-ego "Marjorine" while dancing to a Britney Spears song  ** _was_**  kind of interesting and he had received a lot of cheering instead of booing. Once a performance was finished, the student then went and sat with the audience. He, Stan, and Kyle were planned to be one of the last performances, since Eric had signed up late and then he had included Kyle and Stan as part of his act almost last minute. That was fine with him. He felt it was like saving the best for last. Once the performances started winding down to the final ten however, Eric was pacing impatiently while they waited. Kyle looked up from helping Stan tune his guitar for a moment to watch. "Fatass, would you just sit the fuck down! You're making  ** _me_**  feel anxious just  ** _looking_**  at you pacing around like that!", he whispered loudly through his teeth. Eric paused for a moment and opened his mouth, ready to say something really nasty in reply, but remembering that Kyle was actually trying his best to assist him, he shut it again with an annoyed grunt. He had to try  ** _really_**  hard to ignore the smug smirk Stan sent him. "It's just that...what if Kinny doesn't like the song and this was all for nothing...", he decided to be honest just this once about what he was  ** _actually_**  thinking. Kyle frowned thoughtfully and the smug smirk fell from Stan's face.  _ **Take that bitch**_. "Well, either way, it should plant a seed of doubt in Kenny's head for him to think about...and then, best case scenario, he'll at the very least  ** _consider_**  that your feelings  ** _are_**  genuine and  ** _not_**  some attempt to lure him into a trap...", Kyle spoke up after a moment. Stan thought it over before nodding in agreement. Eric blew a raspberry towards the ceiling in reply, the rush of expelled air ruffling his brown bangs. Then their names came over the speakers, announcing their performance.  _"Now we have Eric Cartman, Kyle Broflovski, and Stanley Marsh performing an original song they wrote called, 'Blonde Angel'!!"_

 

Kenny moved his focus from Craig to the stage once he heard his best friends names announced. The heavy curtains opened once more, revealing the performing trio. He raised his eyebrows in surprise. They were wearing their old, though slightly altered for their growth, Fingerbang outfits!! Eric had only a microphone, Kyle had an electric keyboard and a mic stand in front of him, and Stan had his old electric guitar plugged into a nearby amp with a mic stand in front of him. "Wassup, mah fellow Middle Skewlers!!", Eric yelled into his microphone while punching a fist into the air with his other hand. A few people cheered in response. He rolled his eyes before clearing his throat and looking at Kyle. The redhead picked up his microphone as he began speaking. "Recently, we discovered that an amazing friend of ours doesn't get the recognition he deserves!! So, we wrote this song as a way of acknowledging everything great about him from the way he looks to the things he does for others!!" Stan spoke up next. "So without further ado, Kenny McCormick, this song is for you!" Kenny's mouth fell open as his eyes widened.  _"They wrote a song about **me**?????"_ , he thought, completely surprised by that information. Stan started playing his guitar while Kyle started playing his keyboard while harmonizing into his microphone. Eric tapped his foot in time with the sounds before pressing a button on the little stereo beside him. Pre-recorded drum beats added to the mix before Kyle and Stan started singing together: 

 

_"Can't you hear his heartbeats?_

_Can't you see his smile?_

_Can't you feel his passion?_

_Don't you know, Don't you know..._

_**He's a ray of light in the dark!!** "_

 

_"No matter what it is that you need,_

_He will always answer your plea!!_

_Even if he only has his own soul to give,_

_**He'd sell it to Satan so that others can live!!** "_

 

Eric stepped forward and cleared his throat as he began rapping:

 

 _" Let's have a standing ovation f_ _ or the blonde who gave us salvation! _

_He'd rip his own guts out,_ _without one hesitation, if he could save just a single life!_

_ Tenacity, that's what it's taken, for the boy whose heart is as golden as his hair. _

_ His future's so hazy, constant pain and ignorance driving him crazy! _

_ But still he always fights so hard. You know, just trying to hold on. _

_ 'Cause he knows how much we would all miss him if he was gone! _

_ All the whispers start out solo, but every single day they grow. _

_Saying, **'Kenny, you can do it!  You can do it!! Don't let goooo!!'.** "  _

_(Kyle echoing: "Don't let goooo!!!")_

 

Craig rolled his eyes at the obvious suck up attempt the fatass had roped the other two into helping him with. There's  ** _no_**  way Kenny would  ** _ever_**  fall for that, right? He looked over at the blonde beside him and felt his heart drop into a dark pit. Kenny's eyes were wide, silent tears streaming down his cheeks, as he hid a trembling smile behind one of his hands. His eyes were shining with gratitude and admiration. He was obviously feeling very flattered by what his friends had done for him. The raven silently cursed.

 

_"Can't you hear his heartbeats?_

_Can't you see his soul?_

_Can't you feel his compassion?_

_Don't you know, Don't you know..._

_**He's an angel with empathy in his heart!!** "_

 

_"  Lately, he's been feeling bad. He'd been feeling sad._

_ Holding it inside, feeling like he's going to go mad! _

_ He can't go on, what are life and death for? _

_ His heart screams, 'I can't do this anymore!!!'. " _

_(Stan echoing: "I can't do this anymore!!")_

 

_ "But Kenny, we don't want you to go. _

_ You're so brave and kind, we'd all be lost without you! _

_ Every room you walk into, all the tension just lifts. _

_ You're an angel on Earth, bringing love and compassion with every step. _

_ With your bright smile and your tender heart, everyone around you feels like they have a brand new start!"_

 

There was only the sound of Stan and Kyle playing their instruments for a moment before they started singing again:

 

_"No matter what it is that you need,_

_He'll do whatever it takes to answer your plea!!_

_He'd give his own life in order to save yours'!_

_**Would you be willing to do the same?** "_

 

Eric tapped his foot in time with the beats as he began rapping for the third and final time:

 

_ "You gave up your soul for all of us once in order to save what we'd destroyed. _

_Yet no one remembered a thing.  (Kyle echoing: "Not a single thing...")_

_ You asked for nothing in return, just our love and support! _

_Yet all everyone does, is say horrible things that are far from the truth!  (Stan echoing: "Far from the truth...")_

_ But Kenny,  all you need to know is that even though the others just give you hate, _

_ There are others who would give themselves up to save  **you**! "_

 

Stan strummed a single chord repeatedly as Kyle grabbed his microphone:

"If you hold Kenny McCormick close within your heart, please stand now!", the redhead yelled to the audience, mimicking Eric with a fist punched into the air.

  
  
Kenny wiped his face as he looked around at the people surrounding him.

 

Butters was the first to stand, a bright smile on his face.

Craig stood up with a sigh.

Bebe jumped to her feet with a loud cheer.

Scott Malkinson jumped to his feet with a grin spreading across his face.

One by one, all the original members of Mr. Garrison's Third Grade Class all rose to their feet. Well, all of them except Tweek, who hesitantly stood a moment later.

One by one, all the members of the Home Ec Class, if they weren't standing already, got to their feet as well.

 

Kenny met the gazes of his three best friends on stage, feeling like his heart was going to burst from the overabundance of joy he was feeling at that moment. He couldn't believe...that they had done this all for  _him_. Now he understood why they had been so secretive, it all made perfect sense now. A wide grin spread across his face as he beamed up at them, his eyes full to the brim with happiness and pure gratitude. He was ready to forgive them  ** _all_**  for the pain they had caused him for the millionth time since they'd met.

 

 

After the show, Kenny ran into the flood of people leaving the auditorium, darting around people, until he reached his friends. All three of them smiled at him, although Eric's was more of a sly grin. He wasted no time in hugging each of them and thanking them a million times for writing this song for him. He started crying once he reached Eric. "C-Cartman.....I didn't expect something like this from you...you really  ** _do_**  care..don't you..?", he asked quietly. Eric just nodded as he took his reason for existing into his arms once again.  _"More than you know..."_ , he thought as the blonde buried his face into his shoulder.  _"More than you care to acknowledge..."_

 

 **Eric (+ 2): 3     Craig: 3** (Eric got bonus points from Kyle and Stan's assistance :D)

 

 

 

(End of Chapter Six)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!!! :D


	7. Recurrence (Very Short Preview So Far)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is just a preview so far, just me testing if this will work here on Ao3. The full chapter will be uploaded once I have finished writing it. Thank you!
> 
> Actual Summary:
> 
> History repeats itself. Feelings are acknowledged at last. Tension rises between Cartman and Craig.

(Here comes the feels train!! CHOO CHOO!!! XD Sorry, not sorry!! :D)

 

 

The summer began with a sleepover at Cartman's house. It was a kind of a last hurrah for our favourite four boys since for most of the summer they'd be all over the place. Liane was more than happy to accommodate the other three boys for both Saturday and Sunday, understanding since she had been that age at one time herself. She also was aware of the special  connection all four boys shared, that they'd always be there for one another despite how horrible her little poopsikins could be. The thought of him having others he could depend on, that he trusted, when she was unable to always made her smile. Her little Eric could be a little monster when he chose to be, she wasn't blind to that fact, however she also knew how sweet and caring he could be when his guard was down. She had also become aware about a year ago of her son's "crush" on his certain blonde "best friend", probably before Eric  ** _himself_**  had been aware of how he felt. She was  certain he was aware of it now, she had been able to sense his jealousy for the past three days. Mom Sense and all that. Little Kenny must have found someone else before Eric could make a move, that was the only explanation she could come up with to explain her son's deep-rooted jealousy.

 

Currently, the boys were taking turns playing against each other on Eric's old Playstation 4. Eric kept sneaking glances at Kenny while they played, the brunette's heart almost bursting with joy and relief. After the chaos of the last few days, he was so glad that Kenny was willing to be his "Super Best Friend", in quotes, once again. He'd been afraid that he'd lost the blonde forever, not that he'd share that fact out loud. That sort of thought would make him sound like a pussy, and that was NOT the reputation he wanted to start the Eighth Grade with. Of course, every time he caught the blonde smiling or making that adorable expression he unconsciously makes when he's concentrating, his heart would betray him by jumping or by skipping its next beat. He had the urge to grab Kenny's hand, but at the same time he had a feeling that wouldn't go over well. Especially since Kenny and that asshole Craig Tucker were a "thing", in quotes. Begrudgingly, he had to give Craig a  _ **bit**_  of credit for one reason and one reason only: Kenny was obviously happy again instead of the angry and depressed state he'd been in only a day or two ago.

(This part is just a little bit of random development that isn't really  ** _that_**  important..)

(I'll start writing the more interesting part of the chapter beneath this..^^; )                                         

 

 

It was a week later, the week that Stan's family was on vacation to be exact. Currently, Craig was starting to feel rather  ** _concerned_  **about Kenny. The two boys had been hanging out all day, and all day, Kenny had been coughing every few minutes. They had started off normal, but now they were starting to sound painful. The strange expression that would form on the blonde's face after coughing was doing nothing to stop Craig's concern. It was doing the exact opposite actually. "Um..are you alright, Kenny..?", he asked softly, unsure of whether he should rub his back or not. Gasping once that coughing spell was finished, he flashed the raven a trembling thumbs up. Then he straightened up and Craig let his hand fall back to his own side as he studied the blonde's freckled face. He looked unusually flushed and Craig wasn't sure if that was something to be concerned about or not. His eyes were starting to look glassy as well, his gaze unfocused. "Kenny, I don't think you're as okay as you say you are.." Kenny frowned at him. "I'm fine, Craig..." Craig scowled back at him. "You're obviously  _ **not**_ , Kenny!! Stop  ** _lying_**!! You're coughing every few minutes and they obviously  ** _hurt_**!! Not to mention the fact that your face is flushed, which means that you probably have a fever!! So, for fuck's sake,  ** _be honest with me_**!!" The blonde looked at him in shock for a few minutes. "I...I didn't realize...you cared so much...", he whispered. "Of course I do!! I fucking lo-...I...I just....I care, dumbass...", he started off strong then ended with a grumble, cursing the blush on his face as well as what he almost let slip. Kenny's eyes were sparkling, as he'd caught what was almost said. "You love me..?", he asked softly before coughing again, his happy expression twisting into a pained grimace. He wrapped his arms around himself as he doubled over once again. Craig winced at the way the coughs sounded. They were dry-sounding to start off with then the last one sounded more  _ **wet**_.. Suddenly, a bit of blood dribbled out from between Kenny's lips before splatting into the snow. Craig's eyes widened with shock and fear. "Jesus fucking Christ, Kenny!!  ** _That_**  does  ** _not_**  look fucking 'okay'!!" Kenny coughed one more time before forcing out an, "I'm f-" Craig growled as he cut him off, starting to get pissed off now. "If you say  _ **'I'm fine'**_  one more fucking time, I'm going to stick my fucking foot up your skinny ass!!", he snapped, clenching his hands into fists at his sides. Kenny lifted his head to look at him in surprise for a moment. Then he suddenly doubled over again as he vomited into the snow, gripping the fabric of his coat that was over his abdomen in a tight fist, the other hand burying itself into his blonde hair. Craig jumped back slightly so he wouldn't be splashed with it, his eyes even wider than before. "Kenny? Are you-" The blonde suddenly groaned as he fell forward, Craig rushing to catch him so he wouldn't land face first into his own vomit. The blonde was trembling now and when the raven gently touched his face, he made a weak sound of protest at Craig's cold hands. He was seriously burning up, his eyes barely open and his breathing shallow. Craig didn't know what to do. Should he take him home or to his own house? Call 911? He decided to take the middle road and called Kyle, who was one of the more mature people that he sort of trusted. The redhead picked up immediately.

 

"Hello? Craig..?"

 

"KYLE!!! I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!! KENNY WAS COUGHING ALL DAY AND THEN HE COUGHED UP BLOOD AND THEN HE VOMITED AND ALMOST COLLAPSED INTO IT!! NOW, HE'S BARELY CONSCIOUS AND HE'S REALLY BURNING UP!!!"

 

"Okay, calm down. Where are you?"

 

"The park in the center of town?"

 

"I'll be there as fast as I can. Hold tight, okay?"

 

Then Kyle hung up.

 

 

 

An hour later, his cell phone ringing woke Eric up from his nap. Groggily, he looked at the caller ID before answering it with a sigh. "What do you want, Kahl..?" The redhead's response was immediate. "Cartman, you need to come to Kenny's house asap! It's urgent!" That woke him up quickly as ice flooded his veins. "Why? Is there something wrong with Kinny?", he asked, eyes wide. "I'll tell you when you get here! Just hurry!" Then he hung up without saying goodbye. Eric's heart was pounding with a sudden fear. Kyle didn't sound like he normally did. Whatever was wrong with Kenny must be very very serious. He hurried to put his shoes on as well as grab his coat, hat, and gloves. He ran out the front door, yelling to his mom that he was going to Kenny's house without waiting for her response. He ran down the street and across the railroad tracks, huffing and puffing every few steps. Right away he saw Kyle standing on the McCormicks' front step, waiting for him. "Kahl!", he yelled once he reached him. "What's going on?" The ginger jewboy looked sad and tired. "Kenny and Craig were hanging out earlier...", Kyle began his explanation. Eric grumbled under his breath irritably but stopped when Kyle gave him a **_look_**. "Craig called me in a panic because Kenny was very feverish and he'd suddenly collapsed. Apparently he'd been coughing all day and he'd vomited before he'd collapsed...he...he's really sick, Cartman.." Eric's eyes widened, the listed symptoms horrifically familiar to him. "N-No...N-Not again....NOT AGAIN!!", he could already feel tears forming in the corner of his eyes. Kyle just nodded somberly. "I didn't want to believe it either but....the muscle disease that killed him before is back....and its killing him again...it's like destiny or some shit like that..." Eric hastily wiped the tears from his eyes. "One more thing...", Kyle spoke up, his tone gentler than before. Eric looked at him again. "He's been asking for you...that's why I called you.." The brunette swallowed before speaking. "Asking for me..? But..I thought..." Kyle smiled sympathetically. "No matter what shit happens between the two of you, Kenny cares about you for some reason...he's funny like that..." Eric smiled sadly. "Yeah, he is...take me to him, will ya?" Kyle nodded and Eric followed him into the little, run-down, green house.

 

Karen was seated on the couch, staring blankly at the tv with obvious tear streaks on her cheeks. Kyle made a shushing sound at Cartman as they went passed her. "She's already grieving...Kenny's her hero...", the redhead explained in a whisper. Eric nodded. When they reached Kenny's bedroom, Craig was standing beside the closed door. "His brother's in there with him...", he muttered in response to Kyle's curious look.

 

(More is coming, I promise!! :D)

 

(Spoilers in the images below! As well as in whatever I write below some of the images...)

 

 

("K-Kahl...*hic*...")

("It's okay to c-cry, Cartman...")

("I won't judge you...b-believe me...*sniff*..")

 

("Why!! Why AGAIN!!! Why  _ **Kenny**_ AGAIN!!!")

("....*sigh*....")

 

(".........")

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are always welcome!!!


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